adjective
-
showing thrift; economical or frugal
-
rare thriving or prospering
Related Words
See frugal.
Other Word Forms
- overthriftily adverb
- overthriftiness noun
- overthrifty adjective
- thriftily adverb
- thriftiness noun
- unthriftily adverb
- unthriftiness noun
- unthrifty adjective
Etymology
Origin of thrifty
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English; see origin at thrift, -y 1
Explanation
Being thrifty means being careful of your money and how you spend it. Think twice before you spend, but if you must shop, hitting the sales and using coupons are good ways to be thrifty. Note the similarity between the adjective thrifty and the verb thrive, and you'll realize that being careful with your money might be an important survival tactic. Everyone worries about having enough — look at how thrift shops have become important sources of clothing and other goods for many people, allowing them to buy without spending a fortune. Being thrifty is a solid virtue, as suggested by the old German proverb, "Prudent men woo thrifty women."
Vocabulary lists containing thrifty
"A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "T"
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"The Necklace" and "The Fashion Show"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In “The Millionaire Next Door,” Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko describe wealthy Americans as thrifty saver-investors who have long cured themselves of any taste for luxury.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 8, 2026
Fairly early in his lengthy investment career, in the mid-1960s, this thrifty son of Yorkshire, England, grew besotted with speculative small-cap stocks.
From Barron's • Dec. 31, 2025
“Gen Z, equipped with a thrifty and entrepreneurial mindset, excels in tech-driven platforms, but millennials and Gen X outperform on discipline, diversification, steady retirement contributions and risk management,” Terrell said.
From MarketWatch • Dec. 2, 2025
Rather, they believe thrifty innovation will win them an undeniable advantage – because it was DeepSeek's claim that it could rival ChatGPT for a fraction of the cost that shocked the AI industry.
From BBC • Mar. 10, 2025
On small things I was thrifty enough; no expenditures on “carousing,” flashy clothes, or any of the other indulgences that are often smugly believed to undermine the budgets of the poor.
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
