countereconomy

[koun-ter-i-kon-uh-mee]

noun

plural

countereconomies 

1. an economy operating simultaneously with or in opposition to the established economic system.

Word History and Origins

Origin of countereconomy¹

counter- + economy

Example Sentences

Outside the official economy is a second, or countereconomy, which functions informally and in the best capitalist tradition.

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Much of the merchandise in the countereconomy is stolen from factories and restaurants by employees and sold at high markups.

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The fixer thrives in the countereconomy, acting as an entrepreneur who, for a price, knows where to get just about anything from new fenders for a Moskvich sedan to rare Western goods.

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Officials frown on the countereconomy but are at a loss to do anything about it.

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