Main Entry: ¹econ·o·my

Pronunciation: \i-ˈkä-nə-mē, ə-, ē-\

Function: noun

Inflected Form(s): plural econ·o·mies

Etymology: Middle French yconomie, from Medieval Latin oeconomia, from Greek oikonomia, from oikonomos household manager, from oikos house + nemein to manage — more at vicinity, nimble

Date: 15th century

1 archaic : the management of household or private affairs and especially expenses
2 a : thrifty and efficient use of material resources : frugality in expenditures; also : an instance or a means of economizing : saving b : efficient and concise use of nonmaterial resources (as effort, language, or motion)
3 a : the arrangement or mode of operation of something : organization b : a system especially of interaction and exchange <an economy of information>
4 : the structure or conditions of economic life in a country, area, or period; also : an economic system