Definition of economy
Alternative spellings
Etymology
From Latin oeconomia from Ancient Greek οἰκονομία (oikonomia), "management of a household, administration") from οἶκος (oikos), "house") + νόμος (nomos), "law"). The first recorded sense of the word "economy", found in a work possibly composed in 1440, is "the management of economic affairs", in this case, of a monastery.
Pronunciation
- (RP) IPA: /iːˈkɒn.ə.mi/, /ɪˈkɒn.ə.mi/, SAMPA: /i:"kQn.@.mi/, /I"kQn.@.mi/
- (US) enPR: ĕ'kô'nô'mĕ
- Audio (US) [?]
Noun
economy (plural economies)
- Effective management of the resources of a community or system.
- The collective focus of the study of money, currency and trade, and the efficient use of resources.
- Frugal use of resources.
- The system of production and distribution and consumption. The overall measure of a currency system; as the national economy.
- (theology) The method of divine government of the world.
Related terms
terms related to economy
- economical
- economics
- macroeconomics
- microeconomics
Adjective
economy (not comparable)
- cheap to run; using minimal resources; representing good value for money.
"He bought an economy car."
"Economy size".
Anagrams
- Alphagram: cemnooy
- monoecy
Further reading
An economy is the ways in which people use their environment to meet their material needs. It is the realized economic system of a country or other area. It includes the production, exchange, distribution, and consumption of goods and services of that area. The study of different types and examples of economies is the subject of economic systems. A given economy is the end result of a process that involves its technological evolution, history and social organization, as well as its geography, natural resource endowment, and ecology, among other factors. These factors give context, content, and set the conditions and parameters in which an economy functions.
Today the range of fields of study exploring, registering and describing the economy or a part of it, include social sciences such as economics, as well as branches of history (economic history) or geography (economic geography). Practical fields directly related to the human activities involving production, distribution, exchange, and consumption of goods and services as a whole, range from engineering to management and business administration to applied science to finance. All kind of professions, occupations, economic agents or economic activities, contribute to the economy. Consumption, saving and investment are core variable components in the economy and determine market equilibrium. There are three main sectors of economic activity: primary, secondary and tertiary.
The English words "economy" and "economics" can be traced back to the Greek words οἰκονόμος "one who manages a household" (derived from οἴκος "house", and νέμω "distribute (especially, manage)"), οἰκονομία "household management", and οἰκονομικός "of a household or family". The first recorded sense of the word "economy", found in a work possibly composed in 1440, is "the management of economic affairs", in this case, of a monastery. Economy is later recorded in more general senses including "thrift" and "administration". The most frequently used current sense, "the economic system of a country or an area", seems not to have developed until the 19th or 20th century.[1]
Endnotes
- Dictionary.com, "economy." The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004. 24 Oct. 2009.
References:
- Wiktionary. Published under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
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