En la tienda, el porcentaje de descuento no era exacto, así que la dependienta tuvo que redondear la cifra final.

En la tienda means in the shop/store and sets the scene for the whole sentence.

In Spanish, it is very common to begin with a place or time expression to give context first:

• En la tienda, ...
• Ayer, ...
• En España, ...

It is not required, but it sounds natural. You could also say:

• El porcentaje de descuento no era exacto en la tienda...

But that is less natural here because En la tienda is just background information.

El porcentaje de descuento means the discount percentage/rate.

That is more specific than el descuento, which usually just means the discount in general.

Compare:

• el descuento = the discount
• el porcentaje de descuento = the discount percentage/rate

So the sentence is not talking about whether there was a discount, but about the fact that the exact percentage was not precise.

Era is the imperfect of ser, and it is used here to describe a condition or state in the background: the percentage was not exact.

Spanish often uses the imperfect for descriptions:

• La cifra era incorrecta
• El precio era alto
• El porcentaje no era exacto

If you said no fue exacto, it would sound more like a completed event or a judgment about a specific moment. Here, the sentence is describing the situation that led to the rounding, so era is the natural choice.

Because exacto agrees with el porcentaje, which is a masculine singular noun.

• el porcentaje → masculine singular
• therefore: exacto

Even though descuento is also masculine, the adjective is agreeing with the main noun porcentaje, not with descuento inside the de phrase.

Compare:

• El porcentaje era exacto
• La cifra era exacta

Así que means so, therefore, or as a result.

It connects the cause and the consequence:

• el porcentaje de descuento no era exacto = the discount percentage was not exact
• así que = so / therefore
• la dependienta tuvo que redondear... = the shop assistant had to round...

It is very common in spoken and written Spanish.

Similar connectors:

• por eso = for that reason / that’s why
• entonces = then / so
• de modo que = so / thus

Yes, la dependienta is very common in Spain and means the female shop assistant / sales assistant.

Masculine:

• el dependiente

In many other varieties of Spanish, people might also use:

• la empleada
• la vendedora
• la encargada (depending on role)

For Spain, dependiente/dependienta is a very normal shop-related word.

Tuvo que + infinitive means had to + verb.

So:

• tuvo = preterite of tener
• que = introduces the obligation
• redondear = to round

Together:

• tuvo que redondear = she had to round

This is one of the most common ways to express obligation in Spanish:

• Tengo que estudiar = I have to study
• Tuvimos que salir = we had to leave
• Tuvo que redondear = she had to round

Both are possible in Spanish, but they mean slightly different things.

• tuvo que redondear = she had to round it, as a completed action in that situation
• tenía que redondear = she was supposed to / had to round it, focusing more on the ongoing obligation or background

Here, the sentence presents a specific consequence of the inaccurate percentage, so tuvo que fits better because it shows a concrete action taken.

Redondear means to round, especially with numbers, prices, totals, or figures.

Examples:

• redondear un número = to round a number
• redondear un precio = to round a price
• redondear la cifra final = to round the final figure/amount

So here it means the shop assistant had to adjust the final amount to a rounded number because the discount percentage did not produce an exact result.

La cifra final literally means the final figure/amount.

In this context, it refers to the final numerical result after applying the discount. It is very close in meaning to:

• el precio final = the final price
• el importe final = the final amount

The difference is that cifra focuses on the number itself, while precio focuses more directly on the price.

So:

• redondear la cifra final = round the final figure
• redondear el precio final = round the final price

Both are possible, but cifra final sounds slightly more numerical.

The first comma separates the introductory phrase En la tienda from the main sentence.

The second comma appears before así que because it introduces the result clause:

• ..., así que ... = ..., so ...

This punctuation is very natural in Spanish, just as in English:

• In the shop, the discount percentage wasn’t exact, so the shop assistant had to round the final figure.

Yes, Spanish word order is flexible, although some versions sound more natural than others.

For example, you could say:

• El porcentaje de descuento no era exacto, así que la dependienta tuvo que redondear la cifra final.
• Como el porcentaje de descuento no era exacto, la dependienta tuvo que redondear la cifra final.

The original sentence begins with En la tienda just to set the scene. Removing it or moving it is possible if the context is already clear.

Usually yes, especially in shopping contexts.

Common examples:

• hacer un descuento = to give a discount
• un descuento del 20 % = a 20% discount
• precio con descuento = discounted price

But the exact English wording can vary depending on context:

• discount
• price reduction
• markdown (in some retail contexts)

In this sentence, porcentaje de descuento is clearly discount percentage or discount rate.

Yes, but the meaning changes slightly.

• La dependienta redondeó la cifra final = The shop assistant rounded the final figure.
• La dependienta tuvo que redondear la cifra final = The shop assistant had to round the final figure.

The second version adds the idea of necessity. It tells us she did it because the situation required it. So tuvo que redondear is more informative than simply redondeó.

It is basically neutral standard Spanish.

Nothing in it is especially slangy or highly formal. It would work in:

• conversation
• explanations
• writing exercises
• everyday descriptions

The only slight regional note is dependienta, which is especially common in Spain. Other Spanish-speaking regions may prefer different words for shop assistant, but the grammar and structure are standard.