political economy

American  

noun

1. a social science dealing with political policies and economic processes, their interrelations, and their influence on social institutions.

2. (in the 17th–18th centuries) the art of management of communities, especially as affecting the wealth of a government.

3. (in the 19th century) a social science similar to modern economics but dealing chiefly with governmental policies.

4. economics.

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political economy British  

noun

1. the former name for economics

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Other Word Forms

• political economist
  noun

Etymology

Origin of political economy

First recorded in 1605–15

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

political economy

"Unless the international community directly resources the Puntland institutions that police this coastline, neither the immediate threat nor the political economy sustaining it gets resolved."

From Barron's ● Apr. 28, 2026

That’s the hypothesis of one of the world’s shrewdest and most respected analysts of geopolitics and energy, Cambridge University political economy professor Helen Thompson.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 11, 2026

She covers China's political economy, focusing on the intersection of business and politics, and U.S.-China relations.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 4, 2026

Alexandra, who is second in line to Norway's throne, will join her classmates from August and will study "international relations and political economy," Norway's royal household said.

From BBC ● May 28, 2025

For a number of years, I taught a course in political economy.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela