frugality

American  

[froo-gal-i-tee] / fruˈgæl ɪ ti /

Also frugalness

noun

• frugalities
  plural

1. the quality of being frugal, or prudent in saving; the lack of wastefulness.

   Many people who have lived through periods of economic deprivation develop lifelong habits of frugality and are almost never tempted by wasteful consumption.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonfrugality
  noun
• overfrugality
  noun
• unfrugality
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• frugalities
  plural

Etymology

Origin of frugality

First recorded in 1525–35; from French frugalité, from Latin frūgālitāt-, stem of frūgālitās, equivalent to frūgāli(s) “economic” + -tās -ty ² ( def. ); see frugal ( def. )

Explanation

If you try to avoid waste by reusing and repurposing items that most people would throw away, your frugality will save you money. Some people use this word interchangeably with cheapness, but cheapness is an unwillingness to spend, while frugality is an unwillingness to waste. People who show frugality often find ways of making things useful that others do not. Even after the Depression ended, those who lived through it maintained their frugality, using old t-shirts for rags and washed-out cottage cheese containers instead of Tupperware.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

frugality frugalities

In his piece this week, Adam Chandler writes that the frugality of Costco’s free samples and jumbo boxes of all manner of things serves as a unifying quality.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026

For some Fire followers though, extreme frugality is still the main way to achieve retirement early, and a sacrifice they see as worth it in the long term.

From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026

This woebegone era of frugality hath come to its end.

From MarketWatch ● May 21, 2026

It’s frugality, yes, but it’s also a tiny self-imposed puzzle, one I’ve grown strangely fond of.

From Salon ● May 12, 2026

I’d have to tell Jemma more about Aunt Kitty and her frugality.

From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan

It stretches from the glorious frugalities of Shaker furniture and Amish quilts to the sleek orthodox Minimalism of Donald Judd’s box sculptures and Agnes Martin’s horizontal-stripe paintings.

From New York Times ● Jun. 30, 2011

But this record dictatorship is not all due to the personal virtue and public frugalities of Meritorious Gomez.

From Time Magazine Archive

Mrs. Megilp made up her little varnishes with the genuine gums of truth and wisdom; she put a beautiful shine even on to her limited opportunities and her enforced frugalities.

From Real Folks by A. D. T. (Adeline Dutton Train) Whitney

He hated waste of all kinds, save in words, and carried his home frugalities even to excess.

From Thomas Carlyle by John Nichol

I suggested the placing of a special mark in the hats of the ten-per-cent fiends, so that wherever they dine the symbol of their indiscreet frugalities would be apparent to the initiated eye.

From The Siege of the Seven Suitors by Meredith Nicholson

Related Words

• moderation
• prudence
• thrift