Being called stingy never comes across as flattering, and in fact, depending on the context, can be quite offensive criticism. But do you know what is mean and how this characteristic can be harmful?

The definition of the word is associated with people who have great attachment to material goods. Nevertheless, the term takes on particular meanings in different contexts. To better understand what this adjective is all about, read on and check it out!

What is stingy?

In the dictionary, a stingy person is one who doesn't like to share what is theirs, is attached to money, and overvalues the desire for material possessions, all in a way that affects their own leisure and comfort, or even hinders greater achievements.

The word stingy behavior is quite delicate for those who share their financial situation with others, for example. In view of this, the word is not used as a good quality, since it usually damages interpersonal relationships.

Another term with a very similar definition is avarice. Known as one of the seven deadly sins, avarice consists in excessively cherishing the accumulation of money and wealth, even if this requires sacrifices by oneself and others.

This characteristic can cause family disagreements, impasses in love relationships, and make it difficult to build solid and lasting relationships. However, it is worth pointing out that stinginess does not determine whether an individual is a failure or a success.

Meaning of stingy

Knowing the meaning of stingy makes it easier to understand the different contexts in which the word can be used, that is, even though it is a pejorative reference, it can be used to describe everything from the leader of a large company to the most junior employee.

In the first case mentioned, the meaning of the word represents a lifestyle of the individual who has good financial conditions. But even with money, he chooses to live a very limited life, containing expenses in an exaggerated way.

Moreover, the stingy person who has a high rank tends to be unfair to employees and contractors. This is done, for example, by denying raises or benefits to the category that socially depends much more on paid work.

On the other hand, A person without resources who is stingy tends to be confused with the thrifty. Both are quite different things, so it is important to know how to differentiate between each of these behaviors.

Beforehand, the thrifty person does not give up physical well-being and basic needs just to save money. Thus, there is a balance between saving and investing in one's own security and satisfaction.

Stingy behavior

Petty-mindedness develops a particular behavior that can popularly be called "cowhand", "hard bread", among other expressions. Regardless of how the adjective is known in each region, the behavior is the same.

This type of person believes that he/she maintains economical habits, when in fact he/she is always looking for an accumulation of values in his/her account that will never be reached. This is because no amount of money will ever be enough to satisfy the stingy person.

This is not the case for the thrifty person, who cuts expenses for a concrete objective, with defined values and deadlines. If when the person achieves what he or she has planned, he or she allows themselves to be flexible with their savings, their leisure is being prioritized.

In other words, money is not a priority, but your satisfactions and achievements together. Therefore, this is an economical behavior, since it values everyone's real well-being.

The stingy person, on the other hand, is much more focused on his personal interests. He cares little about the achievement of others and is inclined to exploit the generosity and favors they offer him.

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Habits of a stingy person

In practice, to know if you or someone around you has stingy habits is not at all difficult. This is because the characteristics are very standardized and easily identifiable with little time spent together.

And the main and most common habits are:

Claiming unfair discounts

It doesn't matter if the seller's profit is low or if the price is already compatible with the product. The person will always ask for a further discount and even give up the purchase - even if he has enough money - if he doesn't get the requested reduction in value.

Cheating on deals

One of the most striking characteristics of stinginess is cheating. These types of people always find a way to take advantage in their deals and gain something at the expense of the other person - even more so without the other person's knowledge.

Pretending not to have enough money

Another very common habit is to play the poor and appear to have no money to pay for your expenses. This includes everything from lunch in a restaurant to the basics of household expenses. The person always appeals for someone to help him with the bills.

Holding debt unnecessarily

Since this person doesn't like to spend money, even if he or she can pay in cash, he or she will always be paying in installments, and even accumulating installments. In this way, he or she can never get out of debt and ends up owing unnecessarily high amounts.

Always act out of self-interest

The stingy person doesn't care much about the interests of his or her partner or family members, nor about the growth of the people who provide him or her with some service. What matters to him or her is that his or her own interests are served.

It is because of these habits and behaviors that it becomes difficult to live with someone who is stingy. After all, this individual will be depriving himself and others of enjoying life at leisure, and harming others around him at the same time.

Final considerations

As we have seen, it is fundamental to know how to differentiate an economic person from an economic person. petty, Since being thrifty is positive and aimed at the good of the whole family and even of society.

After this reading you can understand why being stingy is always taken as something negative, can't you? So be very careful that your economic habits do not turn into stinginess.

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