Meaning & use
thrifty
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Meaning
adjectivecomparableapproving
Careful about spending money and using things well, so little is wasted.
Grammar: Goes before a noun or after be: a thrifty shopper, she is thrifty.
Patterns
- thrifty with something
- a thrifty shopper
My grandmother was thrifty and never threw away a scrap of cloth.
The thrifty family saved enough for a deposit on a house.
She is thrifty with electricity and turns off every light.
Word forms
| comparative | thriftier |
|---|---|
| superlative | thriftiest |
Common combinations
- thrifty shopper
- A thrifty shopper compares prices before buying.
- thrifty habits
- Her thrifty habits helped her pay off the loan.
- thrifty with money
- He is thrifty with money but generous with his time.
- thrifty meal
- They cooked a thrifty meal from leftovers.
- thrifty housekeeping
- Thrifty housekeeping kept the bills low.
Synonyms and how they differ
- frugal
- Frugal is very close but is more often used about simple, plain living, while thrifty stresses smart saving.
- economical
- Economical describes things or ways of using, such as a car, as well as people.
- stingy
- Stingy is negative and means unwilling to spend even when it is fair to, which thrifty is not.
Opposites
Word family
- thrift noun
- careful use of money
- thriftily adverb
- in a careful, saving way
- thriftiness noun
- the quality of being thrifty
- thrift store noun
- a shop selling used goods cheaply
Commonly confused: thrifty or thirsty?
thrifty vs thirsty
Thirsty means wanting a drink and has a different sound at the start, with no link to money.
Practice
Maya is very ___: she brings lunch from home and repairs her clothes instead of buying new ones.
Choose one answer.
Thrifty means careful with money and resources. Generous means giving freely, so it does not fit saving.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “thrifty”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.