VocabAhead

Economic vs Economical

Economicadjective

of or relating to an economy, the system of production and management of material wealth

Economicaladjective

using the minimum of time or resources necessary for effectiveness

The difference

Economic relates to the economy. Economical means thrifty, not wasteful. Economic policy; an economical car.

How to keep them apart

The longer word means using less — one of English's small jokes.

Other pairs worth knowing

All confused pairs · SAT list · GRE list · Full word list