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microeconomics

microeconomics

1 6.8
The study of how people, families, and businesses make choices about money and goods
  • noun
  • /ˌmaɪkroʊˌɛkəˈnɑːmɪks/
  • Specialized
translation icon : microeconomía
  • Trying to apply the theories of the small (microeconomics) to the realities of the big (macroeconomics) is misguided.
  • microeconomics theory
  • applying principles of microeconomics

Most of economics is now written in game theory terms, especially microeconomics, but macroeconomics, international economics as well.

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Examples

  • Housing prices are a relative price, and hence explainable by microeconomics.

    Blog text (12)
  • Smith's work provided the foundation for modern microeconomics that has formalized the theory of competitive markets.

    Academic text (2016)
  • That said, microeconomics and game theory are fundamental.

  • However, this does not mean we can reason from a price change in microeconomics.

    Blog text (6)
  • To tackle the question, I apply some basic principles of microeconomics.

    Academic text (1997)
  • First, much of law and economics is just an application of ordinary microeconomics.

    Academic text (1997)
  • OK, so basically microeconomics is all about scarcity.

  • Such transactions are the paradigm market phenomena of modern microeconomics.

    Academic text (1990)
  • The second factor that helped the robustness was the coherence of the elegance of Chicago School microeconomics.

    Academic text (1993)
  • The principles of microeconomics help explain how individual consumers make purchasing decisions.

How Small

microeconomics
  • Specialized
1 6.8
economics
453 3.5
macroeconomics
  • Specialized
6 6.6

Surface Forms

microeconomics singular

Morphology

microeconomics = economics (transparent) = micro + econom + ics

The word is formed straightforwardly by adding the prefix micro- to economics, with no major semantic shift.

Etymology

The word microeconomics is made of micro- meaning 'small' and economics, the same root as economy, which comes from old words for 'house' and 'management'. So microeconomics is the study of the 'small' parts of the economy — the choices of people, households, and individual firms.