frugal
Americanadjective
-
economical in use or expenditure; prudently saving or sparing; not wasteful.
What your office needs is a frugal manager who can save you money without resorting to painful cutbacks.
- Antonyms:
- profligate, prodigal, spendthrift, extravagant, wasteful
-
entailing little expense; requiring few resources; meager; scanty.
a frugal meal.
adjective
-
practising economy; living without waste; thrifty
-
not costly; meagre
Synonym Usage
Frugal, economical, thrifty imply careful and saving use of resources. Frugal emphasizes being saving, sometimes excessively saving, especially in such matters as food or dress: frugal almost to the point of being stingy. Economical implies prudent planning in the disposition of resources so as to avoid unnecessary waste or expense: economical in budgeting household expenditures. Thrifty is a stronger word than economical and adds to it the idea of industry and successful management: a thrifty shopper looking for bargains.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of frugal
First recorded in 1590â1600; from Latin frÅ«gÄlis âeconomical,â derivative of the indeclinable adjective frÅ«gÄ« (dative singular of frÅ«x âproduce, fruitâ) + -Älis adjective suffix; see origin at fruit, -al 1
Explanation
A person who lives simply and economically can be called frugal. Buying clothes at a consignment shop would be considered frugal. Not getting your mom a gift for her birthday â that's just cheap. Thrifty, spartan, and prudent are synonyms for frugal, a word that often has positive connotations when used to describe a person who lives a simple life. "The question for retailers is whether shoppers will remain frugal or slowly resume their old spending habits whenever they get more money in their pockets," wrote The Wall Street Journal. You might also speak of "a frugal meal" â a very plain, cheap one. The word is from Latin frux, meaning "fruit" (in the sense of "profit").
Vocabulary lists containing frugal
100 Top "SAT" Words
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Grade 10, List 1
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"The Necklace" by Guy de Maupassant
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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.
While some presidents have been frugal with their financial forgiveness – George H.W.
From Salon â Sep. 27, 2026
Conventional wisdom says these millionaire-next-door types are frugal.
From MarketWatch â Sep. 21, 2026
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Thursday welcomed for Berlin talks the leaders of three fellow "frugal" EU members -- Austria, Denmark and Finland.
From Barron's â Aug. 27, 2026
In 1996, I met Jeff Bezos in their scrappy offices, and he was very frugal and ambitious.
From The Wall Street Journal â May 23, 2026
His frugal glare extended to the building’s bathrooms.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
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.
