经济 (jīng jì) means 'economy' — the system of production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services in a region or country. The character 经 (jīng) originally meant 'to manage' or 'to govern', while 济 (jì) means 'to help', 'to assist', or 'to benefit'. Together, they convey the idea of managing resources to sustain and benefit society — a concept central to modern economic systems.

This word is used broadly in formal and academic contexts: national economy (国民经济), market economy (市场经济), economic development (经济发展), and personal finance discussions (如家庭经济). It appears frequently in news, policy documents, and business reports. Unlike colloquial terms like 钱 (qián, 'money'), 经济 carries a structural, systemic connotation — referring not just to money but to how wealth is created and allocated across institutions and populations.