home economics
Americannoun
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the art and science of home management.
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a college curriculum usually including studies in nutrition, the purchase, preparation, and service of food, interior design, clothing and textiles, child development, family relationships, and household economics.
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of home economics
An Americanism dating back to 1895–1900
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.
She also organized the annual Lake Placid Conference from 1899 to 1908, which defined the field of home economics and framed domestic work as worthy of research and public funding.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 9, 2026
She was described as "academically minded" with a flair for English, French, home economics and geography.
From BBC • Feb. 21, 2025
According to the Craft Industry Alliance, by 2012 only 3.5 million students were enrolled in home economics classes nationwide, a decrease of 38% over the prior decade.
From Salon • Feb. 4, 2024
“It doesn’t,” replied Ms. Martin, who is also a Republican and taught home economics for 18 years at the Pittsburg School down the road.
From New York Times • Jan. 22, 2024
She was vaguely aware that she was here to get a box of baking soda for the home economics teacher.
From "Out of Darkness" by Ashley Hope Pérez
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.
