What Does Frugal Mean?

What does frugal mean?

According to the dictionary it means “economical in use or expenditure; prudently saving or sparing; not wasteful, entailing little expense, requiring few resources…”

This is what the dictionary says it means to be frugal. For me being frugal is not just buying the cheapest item or not enjoying life by never spending money, it is about making smart spending and saving choices so that I can have money leftover to do the things that our family wants to do!  Being frugal is about spending your money the best way it can be spent.

Synonyms according to the dictionary are thrifty, careful, prudent, scrimping, miserly, and penny-pinching to name a few. I had to look up what miserly meant as that sounds like an awful word and it is…it is being “scrooge-like.” This is not synonymous with what frugal living means to me as I still want to be generous when I can! Being frugal to me isn’t about hoarding your money, it’s about spending and saving wisely.

Frugal to me means bringing your lunch to work instead of eating out daily.  It doesn’t mean never going out to eat, though! There are some days when you want to treat yourself and you can because you brought your lunch to the office the other days.

Frugal to me means clipping coupons, utilizing store sales to save the most on the things we need at the grocery store. It means saving money on toilet paper so we can spend a larger bulk of our grocery budget on fresh produce for the family. It means comparing prices to find the best quality deal. It’s not about getting junk for free or other unneeded items in our household as that would be wasteful. It is about finding quality items at a huge discount.

Being frugal to me is not about being miserable or misery. It is about enjoying life with what you have! If the budget you have put in place for yourself is making yourself miserable, then it is time to readjust and see if you can fit some things in your budget that will give you enjoyment even if it is something very inexpensive.

What does frugal mean to you?

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