economize

American  

[ih-kon-uh-mahyz] / ɪˈkɒn əˌmaɪz /

especially British, economise

verb (used without object)

economized, economizing

1. to practice economy; avoid waste or extravagance.

   Synonyms:

   husband, conserve, save

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verb (used with object)

economized, economizing

1. to manage economically; use sparingly or frugally.

   Synonyms:

   husband, conserve, save

economize British  

/ ɪˈkɒnəˌmaɪz /

verb

1. (often foll by on) to limit or reduce (expense, waste, etc)

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Other Word Forms

• economization noun
• uneconomizing adjective

Etymology

Origin of economize

First recorded in 1640–50; econom(y) + -ize

Explanation

To economize is to be frugal — to be careful not to waste anything, including money. You may need to economize on heating oil, keeping the temperature in your apartment on the nippy side during the winter. Giving a kid an allowance is one way to teach her to economize, spending it carefully in an attempt to save some and make the rest last. Unless money is no object, most people need to economize to some extent, being frugal and avoiding waste. In the 17th century, to economize was "to govern a household," from economy, at the time "household management," from the Greek oikonomia, "household management or thrift."

Example Sentences

Heuristics is the fancy term for the human readiness to shove phenomena into categories into which they don’t quite fit, mainly to economize on mental effort.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026

Rubino says she’s aiming to economize as much as possible — and that means everything from buying lower-priced candy in bulk to reusing baskets from previous Easters.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 2, 2026

Banks would economize on their reserve holdings and, in turn, depend less on reserves.

From Barron's • Feb. 20, 2026

Another way couples economize on weddings is to have that dream destination wedding, knowing that some people just won’t go.

From Slate • Apr. 29, 2024

It irritated her, but she was ashamed to confess it, and now and then she tried to console herself by buying something pretty, so that Sallie needn’t think she had to economize.

From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott

Related Words

• conserve
• cut down
• scrimp