economic
adjective
ˌiːkəˈnɒmɪk 
ˌiːkəˈnɑːmɪk ˌekəˈnɒmɪk ˌekəˈnɑːmɪk 
1 [only before noun] connected with the trade, industry and development of wealth of a country, an area or a societysocial, economic and political issueseconomic growth/cooperation/development/reformthe government's economic policyeconomic historythe current economic climate2 (of a process, a business or an activity) producing enough profit to continueSynonym
profitableOpposite
uneconomic
Usage note: successfulprofitable commercial lucrative economicThese words all describe somebody/something that is making or is likely to make money.successful making a lot of money, especially by being popular: The play was very successful on Broadway. ◇ The company has had another successful year.profitable making a profit: a highly profitable businesscommercial [only before noun] making or intended to make a profit: The movie was not a commercial success (= made no profit).lucrative (of business or work) producing or paying a large amount of money; making a large profit: They do a lot of business in lucrative overseas markets.economic (often used in negative sentences) (of a process, business or activity) producing enough profit to continue: Small local shops stop being economic when a supermarket opens up nearby.a successful/profitable/lucrative businessa successful/profitable/lucrative yeara(n) commercial/economic successUsage note: economicfinancial commercial monetary budgetaryThese words all describe activities or situations that are connected with the use of money, especially by a business or country.economic connected with the trade, industry and development of wealth of a country, an area or a society: This book deals with the social, economic and political issues of the period.financial connected with money and finance: She had got into financial difficulties. ◇ Tokyo is a major financial centre.commercial connected with the buying and selling of goods and services.monetary (formal or finance) connected with money, especially all the money in a country: closer European monetary unionbudgetary (finance) connected with a budget (= the money available or a plan of how it will be spent).economic/financial/commercial/monetary/budgetary affairs/decisionsthe economic/financial/commercial/budgetary climatethe economic/financial/commercial side of somethinga(n) economic/financial/commercial centreUsage note: economic / economicalEconomic means ‘connected with the economy of a country or an area, or with the money that a society or an individual has’: the government’s economic policy ◇ the economic aspects of having children. see also economy 1Economical means ‘spending money or using something in a careful way that avoids waste’: It is usually economical to buy washing powder in large quantities. see also economy 3