What does chrematistic mean?
Chrematistic describes anything connected with chrematistics, the art or science of acquiring wealth — particularly money-making pursued for its own sake rather than as a means to a good life. The term derives ultimately from the Greek chrēma, meaning 'wealth' or 'possession', and owes its place in English largely to translations and discussions of Aristotle's Politics. Aristotle famously distinguished between natural household management, which secures what a household genuinely needs, and chrematistic activity, in which accumulation becomes limitless and self-serving. Because of that heritage, the word retains a critical, even condemnatory connotation: calling a practice chrematistic suggests sterile greed rather than productive enterprise. Today it survives mainly in scholarly writing on classical economics and moral philosophy, where it serves as a precise label for one of the oldest critiques of commercial society — a reminder that anxieties about profit-seeking are as old as Western thought itself.
adjectiveRelating to chrematistics — the branch of economics concerned with the acquisition and accumulation of wealth, especially money-making viewed as an end in itself.
- Of or relating to the acquisition of wealth, especially money-making pursued as an end in itself rather than as a means to living well.
"Aristotle drew a sharp moral line between the household economy proper and mere chrematistic gain."
"In his critique, Aristotle warned that unlimited chrematistic appetite corrupts the true purpose of economic life."
"The philosopher distinguished natural exchange from chrematistic speculation aimed purely at profit."
Aristotle condemned it: this ancient Greek word names wealth-making for its own sake — the vice behind every get-rich scheme since antiquity.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of chrematistic
Chrematistic comes from the Greek adjective chrēmatistikos, 'skilled in business or money-making', formed on chrēmatizein, 'to deal in money', which itself derives from chrēma, 'thing used, possession, wealth'. The concept entered European intellectual life through Aristotle's distinction between oikonomia and chrematistikē, his Greek term for the art of wealth-acquisition. English adopted the related noun 'chrematistics' and the adjective 'chrematistic' during the early modern period, chiefly within philosophical and economic scholarship.
Related word forms
How chrematistic is actually used
Chrematistic is rare and learned, appearing almost exclusively in academic discussions of classical philosophy and the history of economic thought. It carries a pejorative shade inherited from Aristotle, who contrasted chrematistics unfavourably with oikonomia (household management), so using it often implies criticism of profit-seeking.
Easily confused with chrematistic
Chromatic relates to colour or musical semitones, while chrematistic relates to wealth-getting; they share only a superficial visual similarity.