Etymologically
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economical

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 26 October 2026 at 03:17. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • UK: /ˌiː.kəˈnɒm.ɪ.kəl/, /ˌɛk.əˈnɒm.ɪ.kəl/[1]
  • US: /ˌɛk.əˈnɑ.mɪ.kəl/, /ˌi.kəˈnɑ.mɪ.kəl/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English economic + -al,[2][3][4] or, in the OED's revised account, from Latin oeconomicus or its source Ancient Greek οἰκονομικός (oikonomikós) with the English suffix, probably also influenced in meaning by Middle French yconomique and French économique.[5] It is recorded before the shorter adjective, and Etymonline suggests that economic may be a shortening of it.[5][2] The Greek adjective comes from οἰκονομία (oikonomía, “household management, thrift”), ultimately from οἶκος (oîkos, “house”) and νέμω (némō, “to manage”).[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Relating to the management of a household; domestic: about 1487, in J. Skelton's translation of Diodorus Siculus.[5][3] Etymonline dates the word to the 1570s.[2]

Semantic evolution

In theology the word was used from 1577 for God's government of the world and its dispensations.[5] The sense "sparing, not wasteful; thrifty" is recorded from 1601,[5] and Etymonline calls it the main modern sense.[2] Johnson (1755) gave only the older meaning, "pertaining to the regulation of an household".[6] From 1781, in Gibbon, it meant relating to the material resources of a state, or to political economy,[5][2] but that sense now usually belongs to economic;[2][7] from 1795 it could refer to a person's finances,[5] and something run profitably or giving good value was economical from 1815.[5] The phrase to be economical with the truth, to mislead without quite lying, is recorded from 1848 in a Wisconsin newspaper,[5] but it became famous in 1986, when Robert Armstrong, the British Cabinet Secretary, used it at the Spycatcher trial in Sydney.[8] The politician Alan Clark varied it in 1992 as economical with the actualité.[9]

Timeline

  • c. 1487 – relating to household management.[5][3]
  • 1577 – in theology, relating to the divine government of the world.[5]
  • 1601 – sparing, not wasteful; thrifty.[5]
  • 1781 – relating to the resources of a state; to political economy.[5][2]
  • 1795 – relating to one's personal finances.[5]
  • 1815 – profitable; giving good value.[5]
  • 1848 – to be economical with the truth.[5]
  • 1986 – the phrase is popularized by Robert Armstrong at the Spycatcher trial.[8]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Giving good value or return for the money, time or effort spent; efficient: an economical boiler.[10][11][7][5]
  2. Careful not to waste money or resources; thrifty, frugal.[7][11][10]
  3. Using no more of something than is needed; sparing: an economical use of colour.[7][11][10]
  4. Relating to an economy or to economics; economic.[7][5]
  5. economical with the truth: (euphemistic) deliberately misleading, by lying or by holding back facts.[5][12][10]

Word family

  • economically
  • noneconomical
  • uneconomical

Usage notes

Economic is now the usual word for what concerns the economy or economics, while economical keeps the sense "thrifty, giving good value";[2] Collins still lists the economic senses as variants of economical.[7]

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  8. ^ a b Tréguer, Pascal, Word Histories, wordhistories.net, p. "To be economical with the truth: meaning and origin", 21 March 2024
  9. ^ Tréguer, Pascal, Word Histories, wordhistories.net, p. "To be economical with the actualité: meaning and origin", 20 March 2024
  10. ^ a b c d Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  11. ^ a b c The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  12. ^ Soanes, Catherine; Stevenson, Angus, eds. (2004), Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 11th ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press