Consumerism

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /kənˈsumərɪzm̩/

Definitions

1. A social and economic ideology that encourages the continuous acquisition of goods and services as a measure of personal success and happiness
2. An economic system and cultural philosophy emphasizing material possession and market consumption as drivers of personal identity and societal progress
3. A market-oriented worldview prioritizing the buying of commodities and services as central to individual fulfillment and economic vitality

Etymology: Consumerism is a plain formation: the noun "consumer" with the suffix "-ism", which in English turns a noun into a doctrine, system or movement, as in "socialism" or "capitalism." The surprise lies in the first part. "Consumer" came into English from Old French "consumer," which in turn descends from Latin "consumere," meaning to use up, waste away or destroy completely, built from "com-" (together, thoroughly) and "sumere" (to take). The Latin sense was one of depletion and ruin, so a consumer was originally someone who used things up, not someone who bought them. The "-ism" was added on English soil. It comes from Greek "-ismos" through Latin and Old French, and in English it attached to "consumer" to name a worldview rather than a person, so the word describes an ideology of buying as much as the people who do it. The pairing of a Latin root meaning destruction with a suffix naming a creed is what makes the word's history stand out.

Synonyms: materialism, commercialism, capitalism, consumption, shopping culture

Antonyms: minimalism, asceticism, anti-consumerism, self-restraint, simplicity