economize
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of economize
Explanation
To economize is to be frugal — to be careful not to waste anything, including money. You may need to economize on heating oil, keeping the temperature in your apartment on the nippy side during the winter. Giving a kid an allowance is one way to teach her to economize, spending it carefully in an attempt to save some and make the rest last. Unless money is no object, most people need to economize to some extent, being frugal and avoiding waste. In the 17th century, to economize was "to govern a household," from economy, at the time "household management," from the Greek oikonomia, "household management or thrift."
Vocabulary lists containing economize
Night
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The Catcher in the Rye
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Before We Were Free
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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.
That’s an area of discretionary spending where consumers tend to economize first, Faucher says.
From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026
Heuristics is the fancy term for the human readiness to shove phenomena into categories into which they don’t quite fit, mainly to economize on mental effort.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026
Rubino says she’s aiming to economize as much as possible — and that means everything from buying lower-priced candy in bulk to reusing baskets from previous Easters.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 2, 2026
Another way couples economize on weddings is to have that dream destination wedding, knowing that some people just won’t go.
From Slate • Apr. 29, 2024
Helen continued to look for work, and to economize.
From "Typical American" by Gish Jen
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.
