parsimonious (adj) - unwilling to spend money or expend resources; frugal or miserly; using the fewest assumptions necessary in support of an idea or argument
parsimony is frugality, economy, or a reluctance to spend money unnecessarily; the principle that the simplest explanation for something is typically the most likely
BREAKDOWN: The word parsimonious derives from classical roots, but its base does not form any other English words. The Latin parsimonia meaning frugality or thrift comes from the verb parcere meaning to spare or save:
PARS- (to spare or save) + -MONY (status or behavior).
See also: acrimonious, hegemony, sanctimonious
“Let us not be too prodigal when we are young, nor too parsimonious when we are old. Otherwise we shall fall into the common error of those, who, when they had the power to enjoy, had not the prudence to acquire; and when they had the prudence to acquire, had no longer the power to enjoy.” —Charles Caleb Colton
[Our Wednesday Wildcards are fascinating and important words that are not necessarily derived from classical roots.]