parsimony

[pahr-suh-moh-nee]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR parsimony ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

extreme or excessive economy or frugality; stinginess; niggardliness.

Origin of parsimony

1400–50; late Middle English parcimony < Latin parsimōnia, parcimōnia frugality, thrift, equivalent to parsi- (combining form of parsus, past participle of parcere to economize) or parci- (combining form of parcus sparing) + -mōnia -mony

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for parsimony

frugality, meanness, providence, selfishness, miserliness

Examples from the Web for parsimony

Contemporary Examples of parsimony

The family lived with a contradictory sense of parsimony and indulgence, “both beyond and below our means.”
Great Weekend Reads: December 30, 2011
Jacob Silverman, Michael Thomsen, Lauren Elkin
December 30, 2011

Historical Examples of parsimony

But with the operations of magic Rodogune had delighted to supersede the parsimony of nature.
Imogen
William Godwin
I had often heard of the thrift and parsimony of Herr Oppovich's household.
That Boy Of Norcott's
Charles James Lever
Mre charged Pop with parsimony and he charged her with recklessness.
In a Little Town
Rupert Hughes
Parsimony was her great virtue, and a power of saving her strong point.
Orley Farm
Anthony Trollope
It is not parsimony or unwillingness to give, but a disposition to save.
Usury
Calvin Elliott

British Dictionary definitions for parsimony

parsimony

noun

extreme care or reluctance in spending; frugality; niggardliness

Derived Formsparsimonious (ˌpɑːsɪˈməʊnɪəs), adjectiveparsimoniously, adverb

Word Origin for parsimony

C15: from Latin parcimōnia, from parcere to spare

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for parsimony

early 15c., from Latin parsimonia "sparingness, frugality, thrift," from pars-, past participle stem of parsi, perfect tense of parcere "to spare, save, refrain from, use moderately" (which is said to be unrelated to Latin parvus "small," parum "too little") + -monia, suffix signifying action, state, or condition.