uneconomical

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˌʌnˌikəˈnɑmɪkəl/ UK /ˌʌnˌiːkəˈnɒmɪkl/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adj
wasteful of money, time, or resources; not cost-effective

Heating the vast, draughty hall proved hopelessly uneconomical.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · wasteful of money, time, or... wasteful extravagant inefficient profligate costly

Opposites

economical frugal thrifty efficient cost-effective

Word family

Derived forms uneconomically

Related forms economical economy economic

Etymology

From un- ('not') + economical, from economy, from Latin oeconomia, from Greek oikonomia ('household management'), from oikos ('house') + nomos ('managing, law').

un- Old English oikonomia Ancient Greek oikos Ancient Greek nomos Ancient Greek

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# uneconomical

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /ˌʌnˌikəˈnɑmɪkəl/
**IPA (UK):** /ˌʌnˌiːkəˈnɒmɪkl/

## Meanings
1. wasteful of money, time, or resources; not cost-effective

## Examples
- Heating the vast, draughty hall proved hopelessly uneconomical.

## Synonyms
- wasteful
- extravagant
- inefficient
- profligate
- costly

## Antonyms
- economical
- frugal
- thrifty
- efficient
- cost-effective

## Derived Forms
- uneconomically

## Related Forms
- economical
- economy
- economic

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: un-
- Root: oikonomia
- Root: oikos
- Root: nomos

## Etymology
From un- ('not') + economical, from economy, from Latin oeconomia, from Greek oikonomia ('household management'), from oikos ('house') + nomos ('managing, law').

## AI Etymology
Uneconomical comes from un- ('not') + economical, from economy, from Latin oeconomia, from Greek oikonomia ('household management'), from oikos ('house') + nomos ('managing, law'). The prefix supplies the first semantic turn, while the base carries the lexical core of the word. As an adjective, it carries the sense "wasteful of money, time, or resources; not cost-effective", with the older formation still helping explain the modern use. Relevant historical forms include Old English un-, Ancient Greek oikonomia, Ancient Greek oikos, and Ancient Greek nomos. Derivative forms include uneconomically; related words include economical, economy, economic.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

markdown