frugally
/ˈfruːɡəli/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈfruːɡəli/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈfrügəlē -li/ (ame, mw)
frugally — adverb
1. by spending very little money and avoiding waste, especially on food, household
by spending very little money and avoiding waste, especially on food, household items, or daily living expenses.
Theo and his family lived frugally, growing their own vegetables and fixing broken furniture instead of buying new ones.
collocation: live frugally
After losing his job, Amir learned to shop frugally by comparing prices at different stores.
collocation: shop frugally + by [method]
The retired teacher had saved a large amount of money by living frugally for over forty years.
Sofia frugally planned each week's meals to make sure nothing in the fridge went to waste.
Instead of eating out every night, the young couple lived frugally and cooked all their meals at home.
- economically
focuses on using money or resources without waste, often at a larger scale such as household budgeting
- thriftily
similar in meaning but slightly less common in modern everyday speech
- sparingly
emphasises using very small quantities rather than managing overall spending
- extravagantly
spending much more than necessary or reasonable
- lavishly
spending freely and in large amounts, often on luxuries