微观经济学词汇完整版

微观经济学词汇完整版

作者：汤井旗

Ten Principles of Microeconomics

#1: People Face Tradeoffs

#2: The Cost of Something Is What You Give Up to Get It

#3: Rational People Think at the Margin

#4: People Respond to Incentives

#5: Trade Can Make Everyone Better Off

#6: Markets Are Usually a Good Way to Organize Economic Activity

#7: Governments Can Sometimes Improve Market Outcomes

#8: A Country’s Standard of Living Depends on Its Ability to Produce Goods and Services

#9: Prices Rise When the Government Prints Too Much Money

#10: Society Faces a Short-Run Tradeoff between Inflation and Unemployment

scarcity稀缺性 the lim ited nature of society’s resources

efficiency效率 the property of society getting the most it can from its scarce resources

equity公平 the property of distributing economic prosperity fairly among the members of society

opportunity cost机会成本 whatever must be given up to obtain some item

marginal changes边际变动 small incremental adjustments to a plan of action

market economy市场经济 an economy that allocates resources through the decentralized decisions of many firms and households as they interact in markets for goods and services market failure市场失灵 a situation in which a market left on its own fails to allocate resources efficiently

externality外部性the impact of one person’s actions on the well-being of a bystander

market power市场势力the ability of a single economic actor (or small group of actors) to have a substantial influence on market prices

productivity生产力the amount of goods and services produced from each hour of a worker’s time

Phillips curve菲利普斯曲线 a curve that shows the short-run tradeoff between inflation and unemployment

circular-flow diagram循环流向图 a visual model of the economy that shows how dollars flow through markets among households and firms

production possibilities frontier生产可能性边界 a graph that shows the combinations of output that the economy can possibly produce given the available factors of production and the available production technology

microeconomics微观经济学 the study of how households and firms make decisions and how they interact in markets

macroeconomics宏观经济学 the study of economy-wide phenomena,including inflation, unemployment, and economic growth

positive statements实证表述claims that attempt to describe the world as it is

normative statements规范表述 claims that attempt to prescribe how the world should be reverse causality反向因果关系

competitive market竞争性市场a market in which there are manybuyers and many sellers so that eachhas a negligible impact on the marketprice

price takers价格接受者those who have no impact on price but can only accept the price

Perfectly competitive markets竞争充分市场

One such market,called an oligopoly寡头市场,has a few sellers that do not always compete

aggressively

law of demand：the claim that, other things equal, the quantity demanded of a good falls when

the price of the good rises

law of supply：the claim that, other things equal, the quantity supplied of a good rises when the

price of the good rises

normal good正常商品：a good for which, other things equal, an increase in income leads to an

increase in demand

inferior good劣质商品：a good for which, other things equal, an increase in income leads to a

decrease in demand

substitutes替代品：two goods for which an increase in the price of one leads to an increase in

the demand for the other

complements互补品：two goods for which an increase in the price of one leads to a decrease in

the demand for the other

demand schedule需求表：a table that shows the relationship between the price of a good and

the quantity demanded

supply schedule：a table that shows the relationship between the price of a good and the

quantity supplied

ceteris paribus其它条件不变：a Latin phrase, translated as “other things being equal,” used as a reminder that all variables other than the ones being studied are assumed to be constant

A 10 percent increase in the price causes a 12 percent drop in teenage smoking（这句话让我说

肯定是in smoking among teenagers）

At an even lower price, you may choose to go out of business altogether (这个词的用法以前没

怎么注意，此处可以翻译为“直接”)

Equilibrium均衡a situation in which supply and demand have been brought into balance

equilibrium price均衡价格the price that balances supply and demand

equilibrium quantity均衡数量the quantity supplied and the quantity demanded when the price

has adjusted to balance supply and demand

The equilibrium price is sometimes called the market-clearing price市场出清价格because,at

this price, everyone in the market has been satisfied: Buyers have bought all they want to buy,

and sellers have sold all they want to sell

There is no upward or downward pressure on the price

law of supply and demand供需法则the claim that the price of any good adjusts to bring the

supply and demand for that good into balance

shortage短缺a situation in which quantity demanded is greater than quantity supplied

surplus过剩a situation in which quantity supplied is greater than quantity demanded

Elasticity弹性a measure of the responsiveness of quantity demanded or quantity supplied to

one of its determinants

price elasticity of demand需求的价格弹性a measure of how much the quantity demanded of a

good responds to a change in the price of that good,computed as the percentage change in

quantity demanded divided by the percentage change in price

income elasticity of demand需求的收入弹性a measure of how much the quantity demanded

of a good responds to a change in consumers’ income, computed as the percentage change in quantity demanded divided by the percentage change in income

cross-price elasticity of demand需求交叉价格弹性a measure of how much the quantity demanded of one good responds to a change in the price of another good,computed as the percentage changein quantity demanded of the first good divided by the percentage change in the price of the second good

price elasticity of supply供给的价格弹性a measure of how much the quantity supplied of a good responds to a change in the price of that good,computed as the percentage change in quantity supplied divided by the percentage change in price

Demand for a good is said to be elastic if the quantity demanded responds substantially to changes in the price.Demand is said to be inelastic if the quantity demanded responds only slightly to changes in the price.

midpoint method中点法经济学中计算弹性的一种方法

elastic demand弹性需求

inelastic demand非弹性需求

price ceiling最高限价a legal maximum on the price at which a good can be sold (impose a price ceiling/floor)

price floor最低限价a legal minimum on the price at which a good can be sold

When the government imposes a binding price ceiling on a competitive market, a shortage of the good arises,and sellers must ration the scarce goods among the large number of potential buyers.

tax incidence税收归宿the study of who bears the burden of taxation

payroll tax:工资税

A tax burden falls more heavily on the side of the market that is less elastic.

welfare economics福利经济学the study of how the allocation of resources affects economic well-being

willingness to pay支付意愿the maximum amount that a buyer will pay for a good

consumer surplus消费者剩余a buyer’s willingness to pay minus the amount the buyer actually pays

producer surplus生产者剩余the amount a seller is paid for a good minus the seller’s cost marginal buyer边际买家the buyer who would leave the market first if the price were any higher marginal seller边际卖家the seller who would leave the market first if the price were any lower efficiency效率the property of a resource allocation of maximizing the total surplus received by all members of society

equity公平the fairness of the distribution of well-being among the members of society

In some markets,a single buyer or seller(or a small group of them)may be able to control market prices. This ability to influence prices is called market power市场势力.

market failure市场失灵—the inability of some unregulated markets to allocate resources efficiently

deadweight loss无谓损失/社会净损失the fall in total surplus that results from a market distortion, such as a tax

Taxes cause deadweight losses because they prevent buyers and sellers from realizing some of the gains from trade.

The greater the elasticities of supply and demand, the greater the deadweight loss of a tax.

marginal tax rate边际税率

underground economy地下经济

Laffer curve拉弗曲线

supply-side economics供应经济学

world price世界价格the price of a good that prevails in the world market for that good

import quota进口配额a limit on the quantity of a good that can be produced abroad and sold

domestically

deadweight loss无谓损失/社会净损失：是指由于市场未处于最优运行状态而引起的社会成

本,也就是当偏离竞争均衡时,所损失的消费者剩余和生产者剩余。

externality外部性：一个经济主体的经济活动对另一个经济主体所产生的有害或有益的影响

positive externality正外部性：一个经济主体的经济活动对另一个经济主体所产生的有益影

响

negative externality负外部性：一个经济主体的经济活动对另一个经济主体所产生的有害影

响

social cost社会成本：是从社会角度来看的成本，等于生产成本加上给他人和社会所带来的

损失

internalizing an externality外部性内化altering incentives so that people take account of the

external effects of their actions

technology spillover技术外溢：指外商投资、跨国贸易等对东道国相关产业或企业的产品开

发技术、生产技术、管理技术、营销技术等产生的提升效应

technology policy技术政策Government intervention in the economy that aims

to promote technology-enhancing industries is called technology policy

property right财产权

Coase theorem科斯定理the proposition that if private parties can bargain without cost over the

allocation of resources, they can solve the problem of externalities on their own

transaction costs交易成本the costs that parties incur in the process of agreeing and following

through on a bargain

Command-and-control policies（命令-控制性政策）regulate behavior directly

Market-based policies（市场性政策）provide incentives so that private decision makers will

choose to solve the problem on their own

Pigovian tax庇古税a tax enacted to correct the effects of a negative externality

If you have ever been stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic

Tradable pollution permits可转让污染许可证

Right to pollute /pollution right污染权

A moment’s thought（稍作思考）reveals a long list of goods that the songwriter could have had

in mind

Excludability排他性the property of a good whereby a person can be prevented from using it

Rivalry竞争性the property of a good whereby one person’s use diminishes other people’s use private goods私人物品goods that are both excludable and rival

public goods公共物品goods that are neither excludable nor rival

common resources共有资源goods that are rival but not excludable

natural monopoly自然垄断/自然独占

excludable goods排他性物品

rival goods竞争性物品

toll road收费公路

free rider搭便车者/免费享用公共物品者a person who receives the benefit of a good but avoids paying for it

profit-seeking firms tend to free ride（作动词用）on the knowledge created by others

cost-benefit analysis成本效益分析a study that compares the costs and benefits to society of providing apublic good

Tragedy of the Commons公地悲剧a parable that illustrates why common resources get used more than is desirable from the standpoint of society as a whole

Today, all taxes taken together—including personal income taxes, corporate income taxes, payroll taxes, sales taxes, and property taxes—use up about a third of the average American’s income

In many European countries, the tax bite is even larger.

The family’s tax liability(how much it owes) is then based on its total income.

charitable donation/giving慈善捐款

When the government run s a budget surplus,it uses the excess receipts to reduce its outstanding debts

average tax rate平均税率total taxes paid divided by total income

marginal tax rate边际税率the extra taxes paid on an additional dollar of income

benefits principle受益原则the idea that people should pay taxes based on the benefits they receive from government services

vertical equity纵向公平the idea that taxpayers with a greater ability to pay taxes should pay larger amounts

horizontal equity横向公平the idea that taxpayers with similar abilities to pay taxes should pay the same amount

proportional tax比例税a tax for which high-income and low-income taxpayers pay the same fraction of income

regressive tax累退税a tax for which high-income taxpayers pay a smaller fraction of their income than do low-income taxpayers

progressive tax累进税a tax for which high-income taxpayers pay a larger fraction of their income than do low-income taxpayers

Would it be more fair to give the Smiths a tax break税收减免 to help them offset their high medical expenses?

flypaper theory粘蝇纸理论of tax incidence. According to this theory, the burden of a tax, like a fly on flypaper, sticks wherever it first lands. This assumption, however, is rarely valid

flat tax单一税率

total revenue总收益the amount a firm receives for the sale of its output

total cost总成本the market value of the inputs a firm uses in production

explicit costs显性成本input costs that require an outlay of money by the firm

implicit costs隐性成本input costs that do not require an outlay of money by the firm economic profit经济利润total revenue minus total cost, including both explicit and implicit costs accounting profit会计利润total revenue minus total explicit cost

production function生产函数the relationship between quantity of inputs used to make a good and the quantity of output of that good

marginal product边际产量the increase in output that arises from an additional unit of input diminishing marginal product边际产量递减the property whereby the marginal product of an

input declines as the quantity of the input increases

fixed costs固定成本costs that do not vary with the quantity of output produced

可变成本costs that do vary with the quantity of output produced

variable costs

平均总成本total cost divided by the quantity of output

average total cost

平均固定成本fixed costs divided by the quantity of output

average fixed cost

平均可变成本variable costs divided by the quantity of output

average variable cost

marginal cost边际成本the increase in total cost that arises from an extra unit of production efficient scale

有效规模the quantity of output that minimizes average total cost

spread分摊 over only a few units

average total cost is high because the fixed cost is

economies of scale规模经济the propertywhereby long-runaverage total costfalls as the

quantity of output increases

规模不经济the property whereby long-run average total cost rises as the diseconomies of scale

quantity of output increases

constant returns to scale

规模报酬不变the property whereby long-run average total cost stays

the same asthe quantity of output changes

shower heads莲蓬头

water-efficient

competitivemarket竞争性市场a market with many buyers and sellers t radingidentical

products so that each buyer and seller is a price taker

going price现行价格

each seller can sell all he wants at the

, let’s consider a specific firm

To keep matters concrete

average revenue平均收益total revenue divided by the quantity sold

marginal revenue边际收益the change in total revenue from an additional unit sold

At the profit-maximizing level of output, marginal revenue and marginal cost are exactly equal fallow休耕

the land lies

sunk cost沉没成本a cost that has already been committed and cannot be recovered

shutdown歇业

exit退出

price maker价格制定

price taker价格接受者,a monopoly firm is a

While a competitive firm is a

者

A firm is a monopoly/monopolist垄断者if it is the sole seller of its product and if its product does not have close substitutes.

进入壁垒

barriers to entry

The fundamental cause of monopoly is

natural monopoly自然垄断when a single firm can supply a good or service to an

An industry is a

entire market at a smaller cost than could two or more firms.

monopolized markets垄断性

In competitive markets竞争性市场, price equals marginal cost. In

市场, price exceeds marginal cost.

Sometimes companies merge not to reduce competitionbut to lower coststhrough more

synergies协同效应

efficient joint production. These benefits from mergers are sometimes called

Yet in many cases firms try to sell the same good to different customers for different prices, e though the costs of producing for the two customers are the same. This practice is called

price

discrimination价格歧视.

price discriminate

To understand why a monopolist would want to

In particular, one such force is

arbitrage套利,the process of buying a good in one market at a

low priceand selling i tin another market at a higherpricein orderto profit from the price

difference.

Perfectprice

We begin by assuming that the monopolist can pricediscriminate p erfectly.

discrimination完全价格歧视describes a situation in which the monopolistknows exactly the

willingness to pay of each customer and can charge each customer a different price.

不完全竞争

Economists call this situation

imperfect competition

Oligopoly寡头垄断a market structure in which only a few sellers o ffersimilar or identical

products

寡头市场is that there are only a few sellers. As a result,

The essence of an oligopolistic market

the actions of any one seller in the market can have a large impact on the profits of all the ot sellers

垄断竞争a market structure i nwhich many firmssell products that

monopolistic competition

are similar but not identical

寡头市场

oligopolistic market

oligopolist寡头

duopoly双寡头垄断

collusion串通an agreement among firms in a market about quantities to produce or prices to charge

cartel卡塔尔/垄断联盟a group of firms acting in unison

Nash equilibrium纳什均衡a situation i nwhich economic actors interacting with one another

each choose their best strategy given the strategies that all the other actors have chosen

game theory博弈论the study of how people behave in strategic situations

prisoners’dilemma囚徒困境a particular“game”between two captured prisoners that

illustrates why cooperation is difficult to maintain even when it is mutually beneficial dominant strategy优势策略a strategy thatisbestfora playerin a game regardless o f the

strategies chosen by the other players

转售价格维持

resale price maintenance

fair trade公平交易

掠夺性定价 a pricing strategy intended to force competitors out of market with predatory pricing

a short-term big price cut in order to gain a monopoly position in the long term.

Tying搭售

Over time,Microsoft has added many features to Windows thatwere previously stand-alone

products单独销售产品

产能过剩

excess capacity

deserving

No ethical principle says that programmers are more

生产要素the inputs used to produce goods and services

factors of production

derived demand衍生需求. That is, a firm’s demand

The demand for a factor of production is a

for a factor of production is derived from its decision to supply a good in another market marginal product of labor劳动边际产量the increase in the amount of output from an

additional unit of labor

边际产量价值the marginal product of an input times the price of

value of the marginal product

the output

实物资本

physical capital

human capital人力资本

科技知识

technological knowledge

compensating differential补偿性工资差别a difference in wages that arises to offset the nonmonetary characteristics of different jobs

union工会a worker association that bargains with employers over wages and working conditions

efficiency wages效率工资above-equilibrium wages paid by firms in order to increase worker productivity

comparable worth可比价值a doctrine according to which jobs deemed comparable should be paid the same wage

poverty rate贫困率the percentage of the population whose family income falls below an absolute level called the poverty line

poverty line贫困线an absolute level of income set by the federal government for each family size below which a family is deemed to be in poverty

in-kind transfers实物转移transfers to the poor given in the form of goods and services rather than cash

life cycle生命周期the regular pattern of income variation over a person’s life

permanent income持久收入a person’s normal income

utilitarianism功利主义the political philosophy according to which the government should choose policies to maximize the total utility of everyone in society

utility效用a measure of happiness or satisfaction（according to utilitarians,is the ultimate objective of all public and private actions. The proper goal of the government, they claim, is to maximize the sum of utility of everyone in society.）

liberalism自由主义the political philosophy according to which the government should choose policies deemed to be just, as evaluated by an i m partial observer behind a “veil of ignorance”maximin criterion最大最小准则the claim that the government should aim to maximize the well-being of the worst-off person in society

libertarianism放任自由主义the political philosophy according to which the government should punish crimes and enforce voluntary agreements but not redistribute income

welfare福利government programs that supplement the incomes of the needy

negative income tax负所得税a tax system that collects revenue from high-income households and gives transfers to low-income households