Frugal definition and meaning

Frugal definition: People who are frugal or who live frugal lives do not eat much or spend much money on… | Meaning, pronunciation, translations and examples

Definition of ’frugal’

Word Frequency


frugal


(


fr



g

ə

l



)


1.


adjective

People who are

frugal

or who

live


frugal

lives do not

eat

much or

spend

much money on themselves.


She lives a frugal life.


frugality


uncountable noun


We must practise the strictest frugality and economy.


frugally


adverb



[


ADVERB

with verb

]


We lived fairly frugally.


He frugally saved various bits of the machine in carefully marked boxes.


2.


adjective

A

frugal


meal

is small and not

expensive

.


The diet was frugal: cheese and water, rice and beans.


More Synonyms of

frugal


COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary

. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers

Video: pronunciation of

frugal

Word Frequency


frugal


in British English


(


ˈfruːɡ

ə

l



)


adjective


1.


2.


Collins English Dictionary

. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Derived forms



frugality


(

fruˈgality

)


or


frugalness


(

ˈfrugalness

)


noun



frugally


(

ˈfrugally

)


adverb

Word origin

C16: from Latin

frūgālis

, from

frūgī

useful, temperate, from

frux

fruit

Word Frequency


frugal


in American English


(


ˈfrugəl



)


adjective


1.

not

wasteful

; not spending freely or unnecessarily; thrifty;

economical


2.

not costly or

luxurious

;

inexpensive

or meager


a

frugal

meal


SIMILAR WORDS:


ˈthrifty

Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Derived forms



frugality


(

fruˈgality

)


(


fruˈgæləti



)


noun

Word forms:


plural


fruˈgalities



frugally


(

ˈfrugally

)


adverb

Word origin

L

frugalis

<

frugi

, fit for food, hence proper, worthy, frugal, orig. dat. of

frux

(gen.

frugis

), fruits, produce: for IE base see

fruit

Word Frequency


frugal


in American English


(


ˈfruːɡəl


)


adjective


1.

economical in use or

expenditure

; prudently

saving

or

sparing

; not wasteful
a frugal manager


2.

a frugal meal
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms


frugality


frugalness


noun


frugally


adverb

Word origin


[

1590–1600; ‹ L

frūgālis

economical, equiv. to

frūg-

(s. of

frūx

produce,

fruit

) +

-ālis


-al


1


]

Examples of ‘frugal’ in a sentence

frugal


Read more…


MONEY : Your frugal

nature

is

reinforced

but you

also


spring


financial

surprises!


The Sun



(

2017

)


She lives a frugal life and

expects

us to do the same.


The Sun



(

2012

)


Nor was he leading a frugal life.


Times, Sunday Times



(

2014

)


It was caused by an ancient

electric


fire

on which he

cooked

his frugal meals.


Times, Sunday Times



(

2006

)


And often people

interpret

its

meaning

as

simply


taking

good

care

of what we have or being frugal with money.


Christianity Today



(

2000

)


He was also frugal with money.


Times, Sunday Times



(

2013

)


If you live a frugal life and put some money away for your old

age

, you

get


hammered

.


The Sun



(

2012

)


I

think

this

jam


reflects

her good

diet

, frugal

upbringing

and making the most of

seasonal


vegetables

.


Times, Sunday Times



(

2010

)


When you live a frugal life like me, that’s a

lot

.


Times, Sunday Times



(

2007

)


A

retired


railway


worker

who lived a frugal life in a

council

flat and only

went

away on

coach


trips

has left 1.1

million

to

charity

.


Times, Sunday Times



(

2014

)

COBUILD Collocations

frugal


frugal life

Trends of

frugal

View usage for:

In other languages

frugal


British English

:


frugal


ADJECTIVE

/

ˈfruːɡəl

/

People who are

frugal

or who live

frugal

lives do not eat much or spend much money on themselves.
She lives a frugal life.


American English

:


frugal


ˈfrugəl

/


Brazilian Portuguese

:

frugal


Chinese

:

俭朴的


European Spanish

:


parco


French

:


frugal


German

:


genügsam


Italian

:


frugale


Japanese

:

質素な


Korean

:

검소한


European Portuguese

:


frugal


Latin American Spanish

:


parco


Translate your text for free

Nearby words of

frugal

Related terms of

frugal


frugal life

Source

Definition of

frugal

from the

Collins English Dictionary

Quick word challenge

Quiz Review

Question:

1

Score:


0

/

5


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?

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whose
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I saw a man shouting at a driver


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?

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lute

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gamble


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gambol

?

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May 02, 2021

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Scrabble score
for ‘frugal’:


10

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