austere avarice frugal mercenary miserly

parsimonious penurious

1) The economic crisis had rendered the company …………….. – It had to lay off
thousands of workers to be able to reduce labour cost.
2) Some people sometimes mistake a ………… lifestyle with a ………………… one
– Indeed the former reflects prudent economy in the use of money while the latter can
denote a sense of extremity to the point of stinginess. (2 different words required)
3) In Jeanette Winterson’s Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, Jeanette, the protagonist,
is forced to lead an extremely …………….. life of prayer, the way of life forced upon
her by her …………… mother and her …………… church. (1 word)
4) My brother, a self-proclaimed thrifty man, was in effect a veritable ……… person:
he would never offer to pick up the tab when we went out for a drink.
5) In times of war there are often many ………………… who will join in and fight
for any army for purely ……………. reasons: they care less about allegiance than
about money. (1 word; modify if necessary)
6) The corporate world is plagued by …………… and a thirst for power – its sole
existence is to aggrandise as much money and power as possible.