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economy

Syllabification: (e·con·o·my)
Pronunciation: /iˈkänəmē/
Translate economy | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of economy

noun (plural economies)

  • 1the wealth and resources of a country or region, especially in terms of the production and consumption of goods and services.
  • a particular system or stage of an economy:a free-market economy the less-developed economies
  • 2careful management of available resources:even heat distribution and fuel economy
  • sparing or careful use of something:economy of words
  • (usually economies) a financial saving:there were many economies to be made by giving up our offices in Manhattan
  • (also economy class) the cheapest class of air or rail travel:we flew economy

adjective

[attributive]
  • (of a product) offering the best value for the money: [in combination]:an economy pack
  • designed to be economical to use:an economy car

Phrases

economy of scale

a proportionate saving in costs gained by an increased level of production.

economy of scope

a proportionate saving gained by producing two or more distinct goods, when the cost of doing so is less than that of producing each separately.

Origin:

late 15th century (in the sense 'management of material resources'): from French économie, or via Latin from Greek oikonomia 'household management', based on oikos 'house' + nemein 'manage'. Current senses date from the 17th century

economy in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of economy in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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