Read along with the three podcasts, or open the full dictionary entry for Economical for the definition, Arabic meaning, synonyms and example sentences.
Narrator: Today's word is "Economical" — adjective, pronounced /ˌiːkəˈnɒmɪkəl/, with the stress on "nom".
Narrator: Economical means using money or resources carefully and without waste.
Narrator: In plain English, an economical car uses little fuel, and an economical person doesn't waste money.
Narrator: It comes from the Greek oikonomikos, meaning skilled in household management, from oikos, house, and nomos, management.
Narrator: "An economical car" describes a car that uses fuel efficiently.
Narrator: It differs from cheap because economical means efficient, whereas cheap means low cost or poor quality.
Narrator: "Economical with the truth" is a humorous phrase meaning not telling the whole truth.
Narrator: Motoring, finance, household management and everyday speech all rely on the word economical.
Narrator: So remember: economical means thrifty, from the Greek for household management.
Speaker A: What does economical mean?
Speaker B: Thrifty! ECONOMICAL comes from the Greek oikonomikos, skilled in household management, so it means using resources without waste.
Speaker A: So an economical car uses little fuel?
Speaker B: Yes — efficient and not wasteful!
Speaker A: Example sentences?
Speaker B: "An economical car"; "economical with the truth"; "an economical cook" — motoring, humour and cooking.
Speaker A: Common mistakes?
Speaker B: Don't confuse economical with economic, because economical means thrifty, while economic means relating to the economy.
Speaker A: Close relatives?
Speaker B: 'Thrifty' the saving cousin, 'frugal' the simple twin, 'efficient' the effective alternative. The word keeps its thrifty charm!
Speaker B: Let's use "economical" in AI prompts — useful for finance apps and motoring tools.
Speaker A: So a prompt could frame finance?
Speaker B: Right. For a finance app, you'd write:
Prompt: Write a short guide to being economical with money, naming two tips.
Speaker A: How about a motoring tool?
Speaker B: Ask the model to advise:
Prompt: Draft a guide to choosing an economical car, naming two factors.
Speaker A: Could it help with a cooking bot?
Speaker B: Yes, you can frame food:
Prompt: Summarise in two sentences how to be economical in the kitchen, naming one method.
Speaker A: One more?
Speaker B: For a writing chatbot, try this:
Prompt: Write a short note on the phrase economical with the truth, naming one origin.
Economical — meaning in Arabic & definition More E courses GL Dictionary