Superette
Encyclopedia
A Superette, is a compact food market "convenience store
" or "mini-mart".
The term is most commonly used in the North Island of New Zealand
, but also to a lesser extent in Northern New England, Newfoundland and Labrador
, and elsewhere as an alternative name for a "convenience store
" or "mini-mart."
, "super" derived from supermarket
, and a suffix
"ette" meaning "smaller version of"—but no actual stem
.
RCA RADIO MODEL LINE
From 1931 RCA
produced a range of small mantel radios called the "Superette" - in which case "super" was derived from superheterodyne
. Probably the most well known is the Model R7, which was produced in several versions.
RCA also produced an obscure console version the model R9. The R7 and R9 share identical chassis (tubes RCA 280, 227, 235, 245 and 224). There were several versions the R7A using pentode output tubes (RCA 247), R7 and R9 DC for 110 VDC power and the R7 LW for long wave listening. These early superheterodynes had no AVC so stronger stations were louder than weaker ones. RCA also had the R8 Superette as well.
Convenience store
A convenience store, corner store, corner shop, commonly called a bodega in Spanish-speaking areas of the United States, is a small store or shop in a built up area that stocks a range of everyday items such as groceries, toiletries, alcoholic and soft drinks, and may also offer money order and...
" or "mini-mart".
The term is most commonly used in the North Island of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, but also to a lesser extent in Northern New England, Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
, and elsewhere as an alternative name for a "convenience store
Convenience store
A convenience store, corner store, corner shop, commonly called a bodega in Spanish-speaking areas of the United States, is a small store or shop in a built up area that stocks a range of everyday items such as groceries, toiletries, alcoholic and soft drinks, and may also offer money order and...
" or "mini-mart."
Derivation
The name "superette" is something of an oddity; consisting of a prefixPrefix
A prefix is an affix which is placed before the root of a word. Particularly in the study of languages,a prefix is also called a preformative, because it alters the form of the words to which it is affixed.Examples of prefixes:...
, "super" derived from supermarket
Supermarket
A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
, and a suffix
Suffix
In linguistics, a suffix is an affix which is placed after the stem of a word. Common examples are case endings, which indicate the grammatical case of nouns or adjectives, and verb endings, which form the conjugation of verbs...
"ette" meaning "smaller version of"—but no actual stem
Word stem
In linguistics, a stem is a part of a word. The term is used with slightly different meanings.In one usage, a stem is a form to which affixes can be attached. Thus, in this usage, the English word friendships contains the stem friend, to which the derivational suffix -ship is attached to form a new...
.
Other unrelated uses of the word
The quirkiness of the word itself has led to its use by some unrelated groups and businesses:- A 1993 New Zealand band
- Cafe deli in South Africa
- A fashion outlet
RCA RADIO MODEL LINE
From 1931 RCA
RCA
RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
produced a range of small mantel radios called the "Superette" - in which case "super" was derived from superheterodyne
Superheterodyne receiver
In electronics, a superheterodyne receiver uses frequency mixing or heterodyning to convert a received signal to a fixed intermediate frequency, which can be more conveniently processed than the original radio carrier frequency...
. Probably the most well known is the Model R7, which was produced in several versions.
RCA also produced an obscure console version the model R9. The R7 and R9 share identical chassis (tubes RCA 280, 227, 235, 245 and 224). There were several versions the R7A using pentode output tubes (RCA 247), R7 and R9 DC for 110 VDC power and the R7 LW for long wave listening. These early superheterodynes had no AVC so stronger stations were louder than weaker ones. RCA also had the R8 Superette as well.