Economic Vocabulary Words
Supply
How much of something is available.
Demand
How much of something people want.
Producer
People who produce goods and services.
Consumer
People who use goods and services.
Factors of Production
Resources (a source or supply) of land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurship used to produce goods and services.
Economist
Study the production and distribution of resources, goods, and services by collecting and analyzing data, researching trends, and evaluating economic issues.
Loss
The amount of money lost after subtracting for all expenses.
Profit
The amount of money made after subtracting for all expenses.
Scarcity
The basic economic problem that arises because people have unlimited wants and needs, but resources are limited.
Production
The creating of goods and services for value.
Needs
The essentials everyone has to have to stay alive - food, clothing, and shelter. Americans also consider education and health care to also be needs.
Distribution
The manner in which goods and services move from being made to being consumed.
Productive Resources
The natural, human, and capital resources that are used to produce goods and services.
Human Resources
The quality and quantity of human effort directed toward producing goods and services (also called labor).
Natural Resources
The resources, such as timber, fresh water, mineral deposits, that come naturally from the earth.
Economics
The study of how individuals, families, businesses, and societies use limited resources to fulfill their wants.
Opportunity Cost
The value of the passed over item or activity when another item or activity is chosen.
Capital Resources
Tools, machines and factories used to produce other goods.
Consumption
Using goods and services to satisfy wants and needs.
Good
A tangible (touchable) product that can be used to satisfy a want or need.
Wants
According to economists, everything other than basic survival needs is considered a want.
Services
Actions that can satisfy people's wants and needs.