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Engel's law

American

noun

the assertion that the percentage of a family's income spent on food decreases as its income increases.

Etymology

Origin of Engel's law

Named after Ernst Engel (1821–96), German economist

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.

But the amount spent on food as a proportion of all spending drops – a phenomenon known as Engel’s Law, after the 19th-century economist.

From Newsweek

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023