经济学名词解释英文版(14页).doc

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1、-第 1 页经济学名词解释英文版-第 2 页How people make decisions:1.people face trade offs2.The cost of something is what you give up toget it3.Rational people think at the margin4.People respond to incentivesHow people interact:5.trade can make everyone better off6.Markets are usually a good way to organizeeconomic

2、activity7.Government can sometimes improve marketoutcomesHow the economy as8.A countrys standard of living depends on itsability to produceAwhole works:goods and services9.Prices rise when the government prints toomuch money10.Society faces a short-run tradeoff betweeninflation and unemploymentKey c

3、oncepts:Ability-to-pay principle（税收的）能力支付原则:The idea that taxes shouldbe levied on a person according to how well that person can shoulder theburdenAbsolute advantage 绝对优势:The comparison among producers of a goodaccording to their productivityAccounting profit 会计利润:Total revenue minus total explicit

4、 costAdverse selection 逆 向 选 择:The tendency for the mix of unobservedattributes to become undesirable from the standpoint of an uninformed partyAgent 代理人:A person who is performing an act for another person,calledthe principalAggregate-demand curve:a curve that shows the quantity of goods andservice

5、s that households,firms,and the government want to buy at each pricelevelAggregate risk:risk that affects all economic actors at onceAggregate-supply curve:a curve that shows the quantity of goods andservices that firms choose to produce and sell at each price levelAppreciation:an increase in the va

6、lue of a currency as measured by theamount of foreign currency it can buyArrows impossibility theorem 阿罗不可能定理:A mathematical resultshowing that,under certain assumed conditions,there is no scheme foraggregating individual preferences into a valid set of social preferences-第 3 页Average fixed cost 平均固

7、定成本:Fixed costs divided by the quantity ofoutputAverage revenue 平均收益:Total revenue divided by the quantity soldAverage tax rate 平均税率:Total taxes paid divided by total incomeAverage total cost 平均总成本:Total cost divided by the quantity of outputAverage variable cost 平均可变成本:Variable costs divided by the

8、 quantityof outputAutomatic stabilizers:changes in fiscal policy that stimulate aggregatedemand when the economy goes into a recession without policymakershaving to take any deliberate actionBalance trade:a situation in which exports equal importsBenefits principle 受益原则:The idea that people should p

9、ay taxes based onthe benefits they receive from government servicesBond:a certificate of indebtednessBudget constraint 预算约束:The limit on the consumption bundles that aconsumer can affordBudget deficit 预 算 赤 字:An excess of government spending overgovernment receiptsBudget surplus 预 算 盈 余:An excess of

10、 government receipts overgovernment spendingBusiness cycle 经 济 周 期:Fluctuations in economic activity,such asemployment and productionCapital 资 产:The equipment and structures used to produce goods andservicesCapital flight:a large and sudden reduction in the demand for assets locatedin a countryCarte

11、l 卡特尔:Agroup of firms acting in unisonCatch-up effect 后发效应:the property whereby countries that start off poortend to grow more rapidly that countries that start off richCentral bank:an institution designed to oversee the banking system andregulate the quantity of money in the economyCircular-flow di

12、agram 循环流向图:A visual model of the economy thatshows how dollars flow through markets among households and firmsClosed economy:an economy that does not interact with other economies inthe worldCollective bargaining:the process by which unions and firms agree on theterms of employmentCommodity money:m

13、oney that takes the form of a commodity with intrinsicvalue-第 4 页Coase theorem 科斯定理:The proposition that if private parties can bargainwithout cost over the allocation of resources,they can solve the problem ofexternalities on their ownCollusion 共谋:An agreement among firms in a market about quantiti

14、es toproduce or prices to chargeCommon resources 共同资源:Goods that are rival but not excludableComparative advantage 比较优势:The comparison among producers of agood according to their opportunity costCompensating differential 补偿性工资差别:Adifference in wages that arisesto offset the nonmonetary characteristi

15、cs of different jobsCompetitive market 竞争性市场:A market with many buyers and sellerstrading identical products so that each buyer and seller is a price takerComplements 互补性商品:Two goods for which an increase in the price ofone leads to a decrease in the demand for the otherCondorcet paradox:the failure

16、 of majority rule to produce transitivepreferences for societyCompounding:the accumulation of a sum of money in,say,a bank account,where the interest earned remains in the account to earn additional interest inthe futureConstant returns to scale 规模报酬不变:The property whereby long-runaverage total cost

17、 stays the same as the quantity of outputConsumer price index(CPI):a measure of the overall cost of the goods andservices bought by a typical consumerConsumer surplus 消费者剩余:A buyers willingness to pay minus theamount the buyer actually pays Consumption:spending by households ongoods and services,wit

18、h the exception of purchases of new housingCost 成本:The value of everything a seller must give up producing a goodCost-benefit analysis 成本收益分析:A study that compares the costs andbenefits to society of providing a public goodCrowding out:a decrease in investment that results from governmentborrowingCr

19、owding-out effect:the offset in aggregate demand that results whenexpansionary fiscal policy raise the interest rate and thereby reducesinvestment spendingCross-price elasticity of demand 需求的交叉价格弹性:A measure of howmuch the quantity demanded of one good responds to a change in the price ofanother goo

20、d,computed as the percentage change in quantity demanded ofthe first good divided by the percentage change in the price of the secondgood-第 5 页Currency:the paper bills and coins in the hands of the publicCyclical unemployment:the deviation of unemployment from a marketdistortion,such as a taxDeadwei

21、ght loss无谓损失:The fall in total surplus that results from a marketdistortion,such as a taxDemand curve 需求曲线:A graph of the relationship between the price of agood and the quantity demandedDemand deposits:balances in bank accounts that depositors can access ondemand by writing a checkDemand schedule 需

22、求表:A table that shows the relationship between theprice of a good and the quantity demandedDepreciation:a decrease in the value of a currency as measured by theamount of foreigh currency it can buyDepression:a severe recessionDiminishing marginal product 边际产品递减:The property whereby themarginal produ

23、ct of an input declines as the quantity of the input increasesDiscrimination 歧 视:The offering of different opportunities to similarindividuals who differ only by race,ethnic group,sex,age,or other personalcharacteristicsDiseconomies of scale 规模不经济:The property whereby long-run averagetotal cost rise

24、s as the quantity of output increasesDiscount rate:the interest rate on the loans that the Fed makes to banksDiscouraged workers:individuals who would like to work but have given uplooking for jobDiversification:the reduction of risk achieved by replacing a single risk witha large number of smaller

25、unrelated risksDominant strategy 占优策略:A strategy that is best for a player in a gameregardless of the strategies chosen by the other playersEconomic profit 经济利润:Total revenue minus total cost,including bothexplicit and implicit costsEconomics 经济学:The study of how society manages its scarce resources

26、Economies of scale 规模经济:The property whereby long-run average totalcost falls as the quantity of output increasesEfficiency 效率:The property of society getting the most it can from itsscarce resourcesEfficiency wages 效率工资:Above-equilibrium wages paid by firms in orderto increase worker productivityEf

27、ficient scale:the quantity of output that minimizes average total costElasticity:a measure of the responsiveness of quantity demanded or quantity-第 6 页supplied to one of its determinantsEquilibrium:a situation in which the price has reached the level wherequantity supplied equals quantity demandedEq

28、uilibrium price:the price that balances quantity supplied and quantitydemandedEquilibrium quantity:the quantity supplied and the quantity demanded at theequilibrium priceEquity:the property of distributing economic prosperity fairly among themembers of societyExcludability:the property of a good whe

29、reby a person can be preventedfrom using itExplicit costs:input costs that require an outlay of money by the firmExport:goods produced domestically and sold abroadExternality:the uncompensated impact of one persons actions on thewellbeing of a bystanderFactors of production:the inputs used to produc

30、e goods and servicesFederal reserve(Fed):the central bank of the united statesFiat money:money without intrinsic value that is used as money because ofgovernment decreeFinance:the field that studies how people make decisions regarding theallocation of resources over time and the handling of riskFina

31、ncial intermediaries:financial institutions through which savers canindirectly provide funds to borrowersFinancial markets:financial institutions through which savers can directlyprovide funds to borrowersFinancial system:the group of institutions in the economy that help to matchone persons saving

32、with another persons investmentFisher effect:the one-for-one adjustment of the nominal interest rate to theinflation rateFractional-reserve banking:a banking system in which banks hold only afraction of deposits as reservesFrictional unemployment:unemployment that results because it takes timefor wo

33、rkers to search for the jobs that best suit their tastes and skillsFundamental analysis:the study of a companys accounting statements andfuture prospects to determine its valueFuture value:the amount of money in the future that an amount of moneytoday will yield,given prevailing interest ratesFixed

34、costs:costs that do not vary with the quantity of output producedFree rider:a person who receives the benefit of a good but avoids paying for-第 7 页itGame theory:the study of how people behave in strategic situationsGDP deflator:a measure of the price level calculated as the ratio of nominalGDP to re

35、al GDP times 100Government purchases:spending on goods and services by local,state,andfederal governmentsGross domestic product GDP:the market value of all final goods and servicesproduced within a country in a given period of timeHorizontal equity:the idea that taxpayers with similar abilities to p

36、ay taxesshould pay the same amountHuman capital:the accumulation of investment in people,such as educationand on-the-job trainingIdiosyncratic risk:risk that affects only a single economic actorImplicit costs:input costs that do not require an outlay of money by the firmImport quota:a limit on the q

37、uantity of a good that can be produced abroadand sold domesticallyImports:goods produced abroad and sold domesticallyIncome effect:the change in consumption that results when a price changemoves the consumer to a higher or lower indifference curveIncome elasticity of demand:a measure of how much the

38、 quantity demandedof a good responds to a change in consumers income,computed as thepercentage change in quantity demanded divided by the percentage change inincomeIndexation:the automatic correction of a dollar amount for the effects ofinflation by law or contractIndifference curve:a curve that sho

39、ws consumption bundles that give theconsumer the same level of satisfactionInferior good:a good for which,other things equal,an increase in incomeleads to a decrease in demandInflation:an increase in the overall level of prices in the economyInflation rate:the percentage change in the price index fr

40、om the precedingperiodInflation tax:the revenue the government raises by creating moneyInformationally efficient:reflecting all available information in a rationalwayIn-kind transfers:transfers to the poor given in the form of goods andservices rather than cashInternalizing an externality:altering i

41、ncentives so that people take account ofthe external effects of their actions-第 8 页Investment:spending on capital equipment,inventories,and structures,including household purchases of new housingJob search:the process by which workers find appropriate jobs given theirtastes and skillslabor force:the

42、 total number of workers,including both the employed and theunemployedLabor-force participation rate:the percentage of the adult population that is inthe labor forceLaw of demand:the claim that,other things equal,the quantity demanded ofa good falls when the price of the good risesLaw of supply:the

43、claim that,other things equal,the quantity supplied of agood rises when the price of the good risesLaw of supply and demand:the claim that the price of any good adjusts tobring the quantity supplied and the quantity demanded for that good intobalanceLiberalism:the political philosophy according to w

44、hich the governmentshould choose policies deemed to be just,as evaluated by an impartialobserve behind a“veil of ignorance”Libertarianism:the political philosophy according to which the governmentshould punish crimes and enforce voluntary agreements but not redistributeincomeLife cycle:the regular p

45、attern of income variation over a persons lifeLiquidity:the ease with which an asset can be converted into the economysmedium of exchangeLump-sum tax:a tax that is the same amount for every personMacroeconomics:the study of economy-wide phenomena,including inflation,unemployment,and economic growthM

46、arginal changes:small incremental adjustments to a plan of actionMarginal cost:the increase in total cost that arises from an extra unit ofproductionMarginal product:the increase in output that arises from an additional unit ofinputMarginal product of labor:the increase in the amount of output from

47、anadditional unit of laborMarginal rate of substitution:the rate at which a consumer is willing to tradeone good for anotherMarginal revenue:the change in total revenue from an additional unit soldMarginal tax rate:the extra taxes paid on an additional dollar of incomeMarket:a group of buyers and se

48、llers of a particular good or services-第 9 页Marketeconomy:aneconomythatallocatesresourcesthroughthedecentralized decisions of many firms and households as they interact inmarkets for goods and servicesMarket failure:a situation in which a market left on its own fails to allocateresources efficiently

49、Market for loanable funds:the market in which those who want to savesupply funds and those who want to borrow to invest demand fundsMarket power:the ability of a single economic actor(or small group of actors)to have a substantial influence on market pricesMaximin criterion:the claim that the govern

50、ment should aim to maximize thewell-being of the worst-off person in societyMedian voter theorem:a mathematical result showing that if voters arechoosing a point along a line and each voter wants the point closest to hismost preferred point,then majority rule will pick the most preferred point ofthe