| Description | Term |
| another word for business | commerce |
| to trade without using money | barter |
| an easy medium of exchange that represents value | money |
| the money used to start a business | capital |
| willing and able to sell at a given price | supply |
| willing and able to purchase at a given price | demand |
| things upon which your life, health and safety depend | needs |
| things for which you desire or wish but life, health, and safety don't depend | wants |
| things you need and want | goods |
| things done for you to meet your needs | services |
| businesses that grow or make goods | producers |
| businesses that buy goods from producers and sell them to consumers | suppliers |
| the people who buy goods and services | consumers |
| a place where things are bought and sold | market |
| prices of products when suppliers sell to suppliers | wholesale |
| prices of products when suppliers sell to consumers | retail |
| a plan for how money will be spent and earned | budget |
| money that is spent | expenses |
| money that is earned | income |
| the amount of money earned before taxes and other deductions are taken out | gross |
| the amount of money earned before taxes and other deductions are subtracted | net |
| money paid to governments | taxes |
| the money left over after all the expenses in a business are paid | profit |
| the balance when more money is spent than is earned | deficit |
| to set aside or accumulate money for needs or wants in the future | save |
| the ability to obtain goods, services or money now in return for a promise to pay at some later date | credit |
| a good sold and brought from another country | import |
| a good sold to and sent to another country | export |
| any substance which has economic vaue. It could be crops, natural vegetation, livestock, wildlife, minerals or landforms. | natural resource |
| not using a resource at all, or leaving it alone | preservation |
| using resources wisely | conservation |
| limited resources with unlimited needs and wants | scarcity |
| a national plan for the production and distribution of wealth | economic system |
| an economic system where the consumers make all economic decisions | market economy |
| an economic system where the government makes all economic decisions | command economy |
| a kind of command economy where a one-party government representing the poor, working class people, owns all businesses and takes away the wealth of the rich and distributes it among the poor | communism |
| a kind of market economy where people make economic decisions for their own benefit, pay lower taxes, and keep more of the money they earn for themselves | capitalism |
| a kind of market economy where people make economic decisions together for the benefit of everyone, pay higher taxes, and receive more government services | socialism |