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Definition of economic adjective from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

economic

adjective
 OPAL WOPAL S
 
/ˌiːkəˈnɒmɪk/,
 
/ˌekəˈnɒmɪk/
 
/ˌiːkəˈnɑːmɪk/,
 
/ˌekəˈnɑːmɪk/
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  1.  
     [only before noun] connected with the trade, industry and development of wealth of a country, an area or a society
    • They discussed social, economic and political issues.
    • economic growth/development
    • the worst economic crisis since the war
    • There will be no quick economic recovery.
    • the government’s economic policy
    • economic activity/cooperation/reform
    • an economic downturn/slowdown
    • A public spending programme is out of the question in the current economic climate.
    see also socio-economic
    Synonyms economiceconomicfinancial ▪ commercial ▪ monetary ▪ budgetaryThese words all describe activities or situations that are connected with the use of money, especially by a business or country.economic connected with the trade, industry and development of wealth of a country, an area or a society:
    • This book deals with the social, economic and political issues of the period.
    financial connected with money and finance:
    • She had got into financial difficulties.
    • Tokyo is a major financial centre.
    commercial connected with the buying and selling of goods and services.monetary (formal or finance) connected with money, especially all the money in a country:
    • closer European monetary union
    budgetary (finance) connected with a budget (= the money available or a plan of how it will be spent).    Patterns
    • economic/​financial/​commercial/​monetary/​budgetary affairs/​decisions
    • the economic/​financial/​commercial/​budgetary climate
    • the economic/​financial/​commercial side of something
    • a(n) economic/​financial/​commercial centre
    Which Word? economic / economicaleconomic / economical
    • Economic means ‘connected with the economy of a country or an area, or with the money that a society or an individual has’:
      • the government’s economic policy
      • the economic aspects of having children
      .
    see also economy (1)
    • Economical means ‘spending money or using something in a careful way that avoids waste’:
      • It is usually economical to buy washing powder in large quantities.
    see also economy (3)
    Extra Examples
    • Economic growth was fastest in Japan.
    • She's a lecturer in economic history.
    • The government's economic policy has been broadly successful.
    • This book deals with the social, economic and environmental questions of the period.
    • They discussed competitiveness in global economic markets.
    • The current economic downturn has affected the city's art scene.
    • The welfare state is inefficient in purely economic terms.
    Topics Moneyb1
  2.  
     (especially in negative sentences) (of a process, a business or an activity) producing enough profit to continue synonym profitable
    • The college was not achieving the numbers of students needed to make it economic.
    • it is economic to do something They found it was not economic to sell their milk to the supermarkets.
    • it is economic for somebody/something to do something It's simply not economic for these small farmers to start buying large amounts of expensive fertilizer.
    opposite uneconomic
    Synonyms successfulsuccessfulprofitable ▪ commercial ▪ lucrative ▪ economicThese words all describe somebody/​something that is making or is likely to make money.successful making a lot of money, especially by being popular:
    • The play was very successful on Broadway.
    • The company has had another successful year.
    profitable making a profit:
    • a highly profitable business
    commercial [only before noun] making or intended to make a profit:
    • The movie was not a commercial success (= made no profit).
    lucrative (of business or work) producing or paying a large amount of money; making a large profit:
    • They do a lot of business in lucrative overseas markets.
    economic (often used in negative sentences) (of a process, business or activity) producing enough profit to continue:
    • Small local shops stop being economic when a supermarket opens up nearby.
    Patterns
    • a successful/​profitable/​lucrative business
    • a successful/​profitable/​lucrative year
    • a(n) commercial/​economic success
    Extra Examples
    • The business was getting to the stage where it wasn't economic any longer.
    • Small local shops stop being economic when a supermarket opens up nearby.
    • These investment projects will become economic in a few years.
    3. Word Originlate Middle English: via Old French and Latin from Greek oikonomikos, from oikonomia ‘household management’, based on oikos ‘house’ + nemein ‘manage’. Originally a noun, the word denoted household management or a person skilled in this, hence the early sense of the adjective (late 16th cent.) ‘relating to household management’. Modern senses date from the mid 19th cent.
See economic in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee economic in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
Check pronunciation: economic

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