Skip to ContentGo to accessibility pageKeyboard shortcuts menu
OpenStax Logo

ceteris paribus
other things being equal
complements
goods that are often used together so that consumption of one good tends to enhance consumption of the other
consumer surplus
the extra benefit consumers receive from buying a good or service, measured by what the individuals would have been willing to pay minus the amount that they actually paid
deadweight loss
the loss in social surplus that occurs when a market produces an inefficient quantity
demand
the relationship between price and the quantity demanded of a certain good or service
demand curve
a graphic representation of the relationship between price and quantity demanded of a certain good or service, with quantity on the horizontal axis and the price on the vertical axis
demand schedule
a table that shows a range of prices for a certain good or service and the quantity demanded at each price
economic surplus
see social surplus
equilibrium
the situation where quantity demanded is equal to the quantity supplied; the combination of price and quantity where there is no economic pressure from surpluses or shortages that would cause price or quantity to change
equilibrium price
the price where quantity demanded is equal to quantity supplied
equilibrium quantity
the quantity at which quantity demanded and quantity supplied are equal for a certain price level
excess demand
at the existing price, the quantity demanded exceeds the quantity supplied; also called a shortage
excess supply
at the existing price, quantity supplied exceeds the quantity demanded; also called a surplus
factors of production
the resources such as labor, materials, and machinery that are used to produce goods and services; also called inputs
inferior good
a good in which the quantity demanded falls as income rises, and in which quantity demanded rises and income falls
inputs
the resources such as labor, materials, and machinery that are used to produce goods and services; also called factors of production
law of demand
the common relationship that a higher price leads to a lower quantity demanded of a certain good or service and a lower price leads to a higher quantity demanded, while all other variables are held constant
law of supply
the common relationship that a higher price leads to a greater quantity supplied and a lower price leads to a lower quantity supplied, while all other variables are held constant
normal good
a good in which the quantity demanded rises as income rises, and in which quantity demanded falls as income falls
price
what a buyer pays for a unit of the specific good or service
price ceiling
a legal maximum price
price control
government laws to regulate prices instead of letting market forces determine prices
price floor
a legal minimum price
producer surplus
the extra benefit producers receive from selling a good or service, measured by the price the producer actually received minus the price the producer would have been willing to accept
quantity demanded
the total number of units of a good or service consumers are willing to purchase at a given price
quantity supplied
the total number of units of a good or service producers are willing to sell at a given price
shift in demand
when a change in some economic factor (other than price) causes a different quantity to be demanded at every price
shift in supply
when a change in some economic factor (other than price) causes a different quantity to be supplied at every price
shortage
at the existing price, the quantity demanded exceeds the quantity supplied; also called excess demand
social surplus
the sum of consumer surplus and producer surplus
substitute
a good that can replace another to some extent, so that greater consumption of one good can mean less of the other
supply
the relationship between price and the quantity supplied of a certain good or service
supply curve
a line that shows the relationship between price and quantity supplied on a graph, with quantity supplied on the horizontal axis and price on the vertical axis
supply schedule
a table that shows a range of prices for a good or service and the quantity supplied at each price
surplus
at the existing price, quantity supplied exceeds the quantity demanded; also called excess supply
total surplus
see social surplus
Citation/Attribution

This book may not be used in the training of large language models or otherwise be ingested into large language models or generative AI offerings without OpenStax's permission.

Want to cite, share, or modify this book? This book uses the Creative Commons Attribution License and you must attribute OpenStax.

Attribution information
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a print format, then you must include on every physical page the following attribution:
    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/principles-macroeconomics-3e/pages/1-introduction
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a digital format, then you must include on every digital page view the following attribution:
    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/principles-macroeconomics-3e/pages/1-introduction
Citation information

© Jul 18, 2024 OpenStax. Textbook content produced by OpenStax is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License . The OpenStax name, OpenStax logo, OpenStax book covers, OpenStax CNX name, and OpenStax CNX logo are not subject to the Creative Commons license and may not be reproduced without the prior and express written consent of Rice University.