What does “sparsam” mean in German?

Asked whether Germans really are so careful with money, the economist doesn’t dodge it: «beim Sparen sind wir Deutschen fast Weltmeister» (“when it comes to saving, we Germans are almost world champions”). The key word is sparsam, “thrifty, frugal,” from sparen (“to save”). Germany’s savings rate sits above 10 percent, and the stereotype of the careful German saver is built right into the language.

The word family is everywhere: das Sparschwein (piggy bank), das Sparbuch (savings book), der Sparfuchs (a bargain-hunting “saving fox”). Being called sparsam is usually a compliment, not an insult, though the clip’s twist is that all that caution can quietly lose value to inflation.