Difference Between Economic and Economical

Economic vs Economical
 

Economic and Economical are two words in the English language that should be used with an understanding of the difference between them. This is due to the fact that they convey different senses. The word economic refers to the ‘monetary’ or ‘financial’ situation or condition of a person or a country for that matter. On the other hand, the word economical refers to ‘the expenditure’ factor involved in the making of products or service. This is the main difference between the two terms economic and economical. In this article, we will discuss more about each term so that you can have a clear idea of the difference between economic and economical.

What does Economic mean?

The word economic is used when we are referring to a monetary or financial situation or condition. To have a clear idea about the meaning of the word economic, let us look at a few examples.

The economic condition of the country is good.

The economic standards should improve.

From the above sentences, the use of the word economic gives an idea related to the monetary situation and financial status of the country. In the first sentence, the expression ‘economic condition’ is used in the sense of ‘financial condition’. In the second sentence, the expression ‘economic standards’ refers to ‘financial or monetary standards’. The word economical is an adjective. Moreover, the word economic has its noun form in the word ‘economy’.

What does Economical mean?

The word economical is mainly used to speak about something that is related to saving money. So, it is connected to the expenditure in the production process of goods and services. Let us see and example.

This engine is the best you can find. It is economical. You can travel more miles with it.

Here, by using the word economical to describe the engine, the speaker is telling that this particular engine saves money. That is by going more miles with the fuel than other vehicles. In that way, you get to save money. Your expenditure is reduced. The word economical often refers to the ‘expenditure’ involved in a particular action or in the making of a product. Observe the sentence given below.

It is economical to use their service.

In this sentence, you can see that the word economical is used in the sense of ‘expenditure’ by giving the meaning that ‘it is not very expensive to use their service’. In other words, it means using their service is better than using another as it does not cost more money.

It is interesting to note that the word economical is sometimes used in reference to ‘not conceding’ something as in the sentence ‘the bowler was very economical’. You get the meaning that the bowler did not concede many runs to the opposite team by his bowling. There also, the original meaning of saving is implied by using the word economical. Here, money is not involved. However, in a match, what matters like money is the scoring. By, not giving the opposite team the opportunity to score more, the bowler has saved points for his own team. So, he was economical. This is the meaning you would get by the use of the word economical.

The word economical has also been used as a good literary term for euphemism. For example, the phrase ‘economical with the truth’ is a popular usage of the word. This means someone is lying. Without directly saying that, the speaker says someone is economical with the truth. However, when choosing to use economical or economic in writing, you have to be extremely careful about the context.

What is the difference between Economic and Economical?

• The word economic refers to the ‘monetary’ or ‘financial’ situation or condition of a person or a country for that matter. On the other hand, the word economical refers to ‘the expenditure’ factor involved in the making of products or service. Here, the word economical denotes that something is saving money.

• It is interesting to note that both the words, economic and economical are used as adjectives in describing nouns. The noun of economic is economy.

• The word economical is sometimes used in reference to ‘not conceding;’ something like in the scene of a match.

As you can see there is a clear-cut difference between economic and economical. Therefore, when you are going to use one of the words in your writing make sure it is the appropriate word for the context.

Images Courtesy: 

1. Composition of India’s total production (million tonnes) of foodgrains and commercial crops, in 2003–04 via Wikicommons (Public Domain)
2. 1993 Yamaha OX10A engine by Morio (CC BY-SA 3.0)