How to Ask for a Different Size in English (and Fix the Mistakes Learners Make)
Imagine you work in a clothes shop. A customer walks up, holds out a jacket and says one word: “Medium?”
You smile, but you have to guess. Does the customer want a medium? Is this a medium? Is there a medium in another color? You will probably answer the question you think you heard, and half the time you will be wrong. The customer did nothing terrible. The sentence was just too small for the job.
This guide goes through ten first versions that learners often say in clothes shops, in the order a shopping trip happens, and gives each one a repair you can use today. Most of the fixes are one or two words. It is written for learners at about A2, and you do not need to have heard the podcast episode behind it.
All ten mistakes and their repairs come from a Paul and Emily practice episode set in a clothing store and a shoe store; the dialogue and drills written to go with them are marked “written for this page”.
”Medium?” and the sentence that does the job
A single size word makes the assistant guess. A full question tells them exactly what you want.
| First version | Repair |
|---|---|
| Medium? | Do you have this in a medium? |
This is doing real work in the repair. You are holding the jacket or pointing to it, so you do not need to describe it. The sentence asks one thing: does the store have this item in another size?
You can change the size and the item and keep the frame:
- Do you have this in a small?
- Do you have these in a thirty-eight? (for shoes, which come in pairs)
- Do you have this shirt in a medium?
If you want the polite opening, add Excuse me first: Excuse me. Do you have this in a medium?
”Give me a medium” and the problem with sounding like an order
Give me a medium is understandable, and in many shop situations people will help you. But it can sound too direct, because it is a command. The question form asks the same thing without an order in it.
| First version | Repair |
|---|---|
| Give me a medium. | Do you have this in a medium? |
The repair is the same sentence as before. That is a good sign: one sentence fixes two mistakes. Turn requests into questions with Do you have…? and Could I…? and most shop language becomes polite on its own.
”Try this on”: where the little word goes
Once you have the right size, you need to see how it fits. Learners often reach for the wrong verb or put the little word in the wrong place.
| First version | Repair |
|---|---|
| I want to try. | Could I try this on? |
| Can I wear this? | Could I try this on? |
| Can I try on this? | Could I try this on? |
Three things are happening here.
I want to try is easy to understand, but it is incomplete when the object is not clear. If you are holding the jacket, Could I try this on? says exactly what you want to try.
Wear can simply mean to have clothes on your body, and Can I wear this? sounds as if you want to leave the shop wearing it. For testing clothes in a shop, try this on is the useful phrase. It means put the item on for a short time to see whether it fits.
And the small word on sits after the word this. With a pronoun or this, putting on after the object sounds natural: try this on, try it on, try them on. You can say try on this jacket when you name the thing, but the little word this standing alone wants on behind it. You do not need a grammar lecture. Keep the whole chunk, Could I try this on?, ready to say.
”Do you have a bigger?” and the missing noun
Here is a mistake that Emily admits she makes herself: Do you have a bigger? The meaning is clear, but the sentence stops one word too early. Bigger needs something to describe.
| First version | Repair |
|---|---|
| Do you have a bigger? | Do you have a bigger size? or Do you have a larger size? |
A larger size is the more common choice in a shop, and the two words stay together like a single chunk. If you prefer, you can also say a bigger one; the point is that bigger or larger needs a noun or one after it. When you want a smaller size, use the same shape: Do you have a smaller size?
”It is small for me”: telling the assistant what is wrong
After you try the jacket on, you will want to say what is wrong. Two first versions are common, and both can be understood.
| First version | Repair |
|---|---|
| It is small for me. | It’s a little too small. |
| This not fit me. | This doesn’t fit me. or, if you know the problem, It’s a little too tight. |
It is small for me is understandable. It’s a little too small is a natural upgrade for this situation, and it teaches you two useful words.
The first is too. Small can simply describe a size. Too small means more small than you want or need, so it does not work for this purpose. The same goes for the other fit words:
- too tight, too loose (the fit)
- too long, too short (the length)
You do not have to memorize the list. Choose the word that fits the real problem. If you cannot remember tight, It’s a little too small is enough to keep the conversation going. A clear shopping exchange matters more than a perfect adjective.
The second is a little. It sounds calm. It’s a little too tight says the fit is not right for you; it does not say the jacket is terrible. It’s too tight is also correct, and the softer version is a choice, not a rule.
This doesn’t fit me is the clearer version of This not fit me (the helper doesn’t is the missing piece). Use it as a general line when you are not sure what exactly is wrong.
”Medium, please”: answering the news, not the question
The most useful repair in this guide is not about grammar at all. Read this short exchange. Written for this page, not from the podcast.
Customer: Excuse me. Do you have this in a medium?
Assistant: Not in this green, I’m afraid. But we have a medium in navy.
Customer: Medium, please.
The customer heard the word medium and repeated it. But the assistant had just given new information: the green is gone and there is a navy. A better customer listens to the news and makes the next move.
Customer: Okay. Could I try the navy one?
The same shape appears in the podcast, where the assistant says No, but we have a large in blue and the weak answer is Medium, please. The better answers are Okay. Could I try the large in blue? or, if you do not want blue, Thanks, but I think I’ll leave it. The problem is not advanced grammar. The problem is listening and choosing the next move.
A good habit: after the assistant answers, ask yourself what they just told you (size, color, price, place) and answer that.
”I take it” and the polite no
At the end of a shopping trip you either buy the item or you do not. Both endings have a natural line.
| First version | Repair |
|---|---|
| I take it. | I’ll take it. |
I’ll take it is a common way to say you have decided to buy. Put the ‘ll in, and it sounds like a decision rather than a half sentence.
And you do not have to buy something just because you practiced English with it. When the answer is no, close the conversation politely: I think I’ll leave it, thanks. In the podcast’s shoe-store role-play, the customer finds shoes that fit, looks at the price and decides not to rush: Actually, I think I’ll leave them, thanks. The goal is not to complete the sale. The goal is to complete the conversation.
The ten repairs in one table
| # | First version | Better version |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Medium? | Do you have this in a medium? |
| 2 | Give me a medium. | Do you have this in a medium? |
| 3 | I want to try. | Could I try this on? |
| 4 | Can I wear this? | Could I try this on? |
| 5 | Can I try on this? | Could I try this on? |
| 6 | Do you have a bigger? | Do you have a larger size? |
| 7 | It is small for me. | It’s a little too small. |
| 8 | This not fit me. | This doesn’t fit me. / It’s a little too tight. |
| 9 | I take it. | I’ll take it. |
| 10 | Medium, please. (after “Not in green, but we have navy”) | Okay. Could I try the navy one? |
Repair these customer lines
The drills in this section are written for this page, not from the podcast. Say each customer line aloud, then fix it before you read the answer.
- You hold a pair of jeans in a size 30. You want a 32. You say: Thirty-two?
- You want to see if a scarf is long enough. You say: I want to try.
- You want a bigger jacket. You say: Do you have a bigger?
- The sweater is tight around your arms. You say: It is small for me.
- The assistant says We have a large, but not in grey. We have it in black. You say: Large, please.
- You have decided to buy the jacket. You say: I take it.
Answers
- Do you have these in a thirty-two? (Jeans are plural, so these fits.)
- Could I try this on?
- Do you have a larger size? (or a bigger size)
- It’s a little too tight. (or It’s a little too small.)
- Okay. Could I try the large in black? (Answer the news: grey is gone and black is available.)
- I’ll take it.
Build the exchange from clues
Below are the assistant’s lines. Write the customer’s reply to each one, using the repairs you have learned. The exchange follows the shape of the podcast’s shop conversation; the drill is written for this page.
- Assistant: Hi. Can I help you? (You are holding a shirt in small and you need medium.)
- Assistant: Yes, we do. Here you are. (You want to see how it fits.)
- Assistant: Of course. The fitting rooms are over there. (You come back; the sleeves feel tight.)
- Assistant: We have a large, but only in blue. (You want to try it.)
- Assistant: How is the fit? (It fits well and you will buy it.)
Answers
Yours may differ. A reasonable answer:
- Yes, please. Do you have this in a medium?
- Thanks. Could I try this on?
- It’s a little too tight. Do you have a larger size?
- Okay. Could I try the blue one?
- This one fits better. I’ll take it.
Say it out loud, then change the item
Take any item near you: a shirt, a jacket, a bag. Say the first line of the exchange in the order of a real shopping trip, and change the size or the thing so it is yours:
- Do you have this in a medium?
- Could I try this on?
- It’s a little too tight.
- Do you have a larger size?
- Okay. Could I try the blue one?
- This one fits better. I’ll take it. or I think I’ll leave it, thanks.
Then do it again, and let someone give you a surprise: no size, no color, or a different style. Use what they say to choose your next line. If you forget a word, keep the task: ask for the size, try the item, say how it fits, ask for an alternative, decide.
Small doubts about Could, Can and please
Is Can I try this on? wrong?
No. Can I try this on? is common and correct. Could I try this on? is a little softer, and the episode uses it, so it is the one to keep in your head. The mistake in the table is Can I try on this?, where the word order is awkward with a bare this.
Do I have to say please?
No. Do you have this in a medium? is polite without it. You can add please when the assistant offers help: Yes, please. Do you have this in a medium?
What if I only know one fit word?
Use it. It’s a little too small or It doesn’t fit me is enough to keep the conversation going. The assistant will ask more questions if they need to.
Can I use the same lines for shoes and trousers?
Yes. Change the plural: Do you have these in a thirty-eight?, Could I try these on?, They’re a little too loose. The frame stays the same.
Hear it in a real conversation
Want to hear Paul and Emily practise the same shopping exchange in a clothing store and a shoe store, with a listening check, a quiz and a final speaking challenge? Listen to the episode and read the transcript in Practice English for 30 Minutes a Day: Build a Routine You Can Follow.