Glossary Terms:

A financial institution that provides various products and services to its customers, including checking and savings accounts, loans and currency exchange.

Monetary or non-monetary gain received because of an action taken or a decision made.

Any activity or organization that produces or exchanges goods or services for a profit.

Government-issued pieces of metal that have value and are used as money.

People who use goods and services to satisfy their personal needs and not for resale or in the production of other goods and services.

An amount that must be paid or spent to buy or obtain something. The effort, loss or sacrifice necessary to achieve or obtain something.

Trading a good or service for another good or service, or for money.

The central bank of the United States. Its main function is controlling the money supply through monetary policy. The Federal Reserve System divides the country into 12 districts, each with its own Federal Reserve bank. Each district bank is directed by its nine-person board of directors. The Board of Governors, which is made up of seven members appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate to 14-year terms, directs the nation's monetary policy and the overall activities of the Federal Reserve. The Federal Open Market Committee is the official policy-making body; it is made up of the members of the Board of Governors and five of the district bank presidents.

Tangible objects that satisfy economic wants.

A period of time long enough for firms to change the quantities of all the resources they use; the exact amount of time varies depending on the industry.

Anything that is generally accepted as final payment for goods and services; serves as a medium of exchange, a store of value and a standard of value. Characteristics of money are portability, stability in value, uniformity, durability and acceptance.

The total amount owed by the national government to those from whom it has borrowed to finance the accumulated difference between annual budget deficits and annual budget surpluses; also called public debt.

Certificates of various denominations generally recognized and accepted as a medium of exchange within a nation and elsewhere. Paper money is issued and backed by national governments or, in the case of the euro, by a group of governments.

Income received for entrepreneurial skills and risk taking, calculated by subtracting all of a firm's explicit and implicit costs from its total revenues.

The basic kinds of resources used to produce goods and services: land or natural resources, human resources (including labor and entrepreneurship), and capital.

Earnings from an investment, usually expressed as an annual percentage.

The money a business receives from customers who buy its goods and services. Not to be confused with profit.

Activities performed by people, firms or government agencies to satisfy economic wants.

Effort applied to achieve a purpose or result, often for pay; skills and knowledge put to use to get something done; employment at a job or in a position; occupation, profession, business, trade, craft, etc.