The word 省吃俭用 is formed by combining two parallel verb-object phrases: 省吃, meaning "to save on food", and 俭用, meaning "to be frugal in expenses". Here, 省 (save) and 俭 (be frugal) are verbs, while 吃 (eating) and 用 (spending) are their respective objects, resulting in a compound idiom that emphasizes thriftiness in both consumption and daily use.