consumer price index

noun

: an index measuring the change in the cost of typical wage-earner purchases of goods and services expressed as a percentage of the cost of these same goods and services in some base period

—abbreviation CPI

called also cost-of-living index

Examples of consumer price index in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The consumer price index for May, a broad measure of the costs of goods and services in the economy, registered its highest reading in three years. —Morgan Chittum, CNBC, 13 June 2026

But neither Wednesday’s consumer price index nor Thursday’s business inflation report was lower than expected. —Steve Kopack, NBC news, 11 June 2026

Data released Wednesday showed the consumer price index rose 4.2% year-on-year in May, up from April's 3.8% figure and a fresh three-year high. —Frank Andrews, CBS News, 10 June 2026

Treasury yields barely moved Monday, which shows markets are looking more toward inflation, Larkin says: That data that will come out this week as the May consumer price index (CPI) arrives on Wednesday and the producer price index (PPI) Thursday. —Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 8 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1945, in the meaning defined above

Legal Definition

consumer price index

noun

consumer price in·​dex

: an index measuring the change in the cost of typical wage-earner purchases of goods and services in some base period

called also cost-of-living index