Meaning & use
parsimony
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Extreme unwillingness to spend money or use resources; stinginess, or, in science, a preference for the simplest explanation.
See it in a sentence
The old man's parsimony meant he wore the same coat for twenty years rather than buy a new one.
Scientists favor the principle of parsimony, choosing the theory that explains the data with the fewest assumptions.
A note on using this word
In everyday use parsimony usually has a negative, critical tone, but in science and philosophy (as in "the law of parsimony") it names a neutral, even positive, principle of simplicity.
Words with a similar meaning
frugalitystinginessthrift
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Words with an opposite meaning
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