frugal

adjective

fru·​gal ˈfrü-gəl How to pronounce frugal (audio)
: characterized by or reflecting economy in the use of resources
frugally adverb

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Frugal Has Surprising Roots

Those who are frugal are unwilling to (lavishly) enjoy the fruits of their labors, so it may surprise you to learn that frugal ultimately derives from the Latin frux, meaning "fruit" or "value," and is even a distant cousin of the Latin word for "enjoy" (frui). The connection between fruit or value and restraint was first made in Latin; the Middle French word that English speakers eventually adopted as frugal came from the Latin adjective frugalis, a frux descendant meaning "virtuous" or "frugal." Although English speakers adopted frugal by the 16th century, they were already lavishly supplied with earlier coinages to denote the idea, including sparing and thrifty.

Choose the Right Synonym for frugal

sparing, frugal, thrifty, economical mean careful in the use of one's money or resources.

sparing stresses abstention and restraint.

sparing in the offering of advice

frugal implies absence of luxury and simplicity of lifestyle.

ran a frugal household

thrifty stresses good management and industry.

thrifty use of nonrenewable resources

economical stresses prudent management, lack of wastefulness, and use of things to their best advantage.

an economical health-care plan

Examples of frugal in a Sentence

His meals are the frugal fare of the poor: tea, bread, yogurt, a bit of cheese, vegetables. Johanna McGeary, Time, 25 Oct. 2004
Like frugal cooks everywhere, Cajun cooks from generations past found plenty of ways to use every part of the animals they raised. Jeremy Sauer, Cook's Country, June 1995
In a frugal white frame house of tiny rooms that shook with every passing freight train, five boys of German immigrant background had grown up at the turn of the twentieth century. Robert D. Kaplan, An Empire Wilderness, 1988
a frugal meal of bread and cheese by being frugal, the family is able to stretch its monthly budget
Recent Examples on the Web Despite his wealth, Zong was known for his frugal lifestyle, which set him apart from many of China’s new rich. Nectar Gan, CNN, 26 Feb. 2024 With a more frugal approach, there is widespread fear throughout the industry about the fallout from a contraction. John Koblin, New York Times, 16 Jan. 2024 Famously frugal Warren Buffett has always been clear his billions won’t go to family—it’ll be invested in charitable foundations, a fitting end to a career of philanthropy. Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 26 Feb. 2024 The frugal Fish may flounder but should be able to avoid the cellar as long as the Nationals stay in the division. Dan Schlossberg, Forbes, 19 Feb. 2024 When those same teams were realizing full value of their television contracts, several ownership groups were still restrained and frugal in their payroll budgets. Bernie Pleskoff, Forbes, 15 Feb. 2024 Sometimes, those can come in the forms of frugal free-agent deals, like the one Minnesota inked Nickeil Alexander-Walker to last summer. Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 10 Feb. 2024 And hoarders in particular view themselves as frugal rather than nuts. Marni Jameson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 31 Jan. 2024 Ingredients were locally accessible, often homegrown, and recipes were economically frugal and quick to execute, both by necessity. Jamie Schler, Charlotte Observer, 31 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'frugal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French & Late Latin; Middle French, borrowed from Late Latin frūgālis "not given to excess, temperate, sober, simple" (early Medieval Latin also "thrifty, sparing"), back-formation from Latin frūgālior, frūgālissimus and frūgāliter, comparative and superlative degrees and adverbial derivative (with the suffix -āl- -al entry 1) of frūgī "(of people, especially slaves) having merit or worth, deserving, sober, thrifty," "(of things) moderate, sober," predicative dative of frūg-, frūx (usually in plural) "edible produce of plants, fruit, crops, grain," root noun from the base of fruor, fruī "to enjoy the produce or proceeds of, derive advantage from" — more at fruit entry 1

Note: The dative noun frūgī must originally have been used with a modifying adjective in a construction such as esse frūgī bonae "to be capable of giving a good harvest or good return," first applied to things, then extended to persons.

First Known Use

1542, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of frugal was in 1542

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Dictionary Entries Near frugal

Cite this Entry

“Frugal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/frugal. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

frugal

adjective
fru·​gal ˈfrü-gəl How to pronounce frugal (audio)
: careful in spending or using resources
frugality noun
frugally adverb

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