I. ēˈkänəmē, ə̇ˈ-, -mi noun
( -es )
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: alteration (influenced by such forms as Medieval Latin economus steward, from Late Latin oeconomus, from Greek oikonomos ) of earlier yconomie, from Middle French, from Medieval Latin oeconomia, from Greek oikonomia, from oikonomos steward (from oikos house + -nomos manager, from nemein to distribute, manage) + -ia -y — more at vicinity , nimble
1.
a. obsolete : an art of managing a household
b. archaic : the management of the affairs of a group, community, or establishment with a view to insuring its maintenance or productiveness
c. : God's plan or system for the government of the world
the Incarnation would be no accident in the divine economy — P.E.More
also : a special divine dispensation suited to the needs of a nation or period
d. : the management of a person's household or private affairs
2.
a. : thrifty or economical use or administration of material resources : frugality in expenditures sometimes verging on parsimony
the great cathedrals after 1200 show economy , and sometimes worse — Henry Adams
also : an instance or a means of economizing : saving
a small economy if achieved at the expense of quality
b.
(1) : cautious, selective, or partial exposition of facts or principles especially to avoid causing displeasure — used chiefly in the phrase economy of truth
either suffering from a lapse of memory or practicing an official economy of truth — Times Literary Supplement
(2) : the efficient and sparing use of nonmaterial resources
economy of effort
economy of motion
: the reduction to a minimum of the steps or processes required to achieve some end or reach some conclusion (as in logical reasoning); also : the saving achieved thereby
(3) : conciseness in verbal or artistic expression : elimination of all unnecessary details so as to produce the maximum artistic effect
every device of economy known to musical expression — Virgil Thomson
the incidents are treated with dramatic economy — Hector Chevigny
3.
a. : the system of arrangement or mode of operation or functioning of anything : organization
the individual's psychic economy
the place of the university in the educational economy of the state
b.
(1) : the natural ordering or system of operation of the processes of anabolism and catabolism in living bodies
the economy of the cell
(2) : the body of an animal or plant as an organized whole
disorganizing wide segments of the body economy — Leonard Engel
4.
a. : the structure of economic life in a country or area : an economic system
the economy was rising to new peaks of production and employment — F.B.Wilde
also : a segment of an economic system
sweeping changes in our farm economy
b. : a particular type of economic system or stage of economic development
a money economy
a pastoral economy
Synonyms: see system
II. adjective
: designed to save money
economy cars