waste 1 of 3

noun

ˈwāst How to pronounce waste (audio)
Definition of wastenext
1
as in wastefulness
an instance of spending money or resources without care or restraint it seems like a waste to spend my entire paycheck on a bigger TV

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2
as in garbage
discarded or useless material gathered up the waste when he was finished sewing

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in desert
land that is uninhabited or not fit for crops an area that was a barren waste after the strip-mining had ended

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4
as in dung
solid matter discharged from an animal's alimentary canal a local ordinance requiring dog owners to properly dispose of their pet's waste

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5
as in expansion
a wide space or area a legendary mariner doomed to sail the watery wastes of the world until Judgment Day

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6
as in erosion
a gradual weakening, loss, or destruction the slow waste of the once broad beach by the relentless tide

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

waste

2 of 3

verb

1
as in to spend
to use up carelessly he wasted his lottery winnings on booze-soaked nights with gold diggers

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2
as in to ruin
to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of one country attempting to waste another

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to weaken
to diminish the physical strength of endless months of inactivity wasted him

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

waste

3 of 3

adjective

as in barren
producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation waste acreage that was not fit for anything

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb waste contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of waste are despoil, devastate, pillage, ravage, and sack. While all these words mean "to lay waste by plundering or destroying," waste may imply producing the same result by a slow process rather than sudden and violent action.

years of drought had wasted the area

When would despoil be a good substitute for waste?

In some situations, the words despoil and waste are roughly equivalent. However, despoil applies to looting or robbing without suggesting accompanying destruction.

the Nazis despoiled the art museums

When is it sensible to use devastate instead of waste?

Although the words devastate and waste have much in common, devastate implies the complete ruin and desolation of a wide area.

an earthquake devastated the city

How are the words pillage and sack related as synonyms of waste?

Pillage implies ruthless plundering at will but without the completeness suggested by sack.

settlements pillaged by Vikings

When is ravage a more appropriate choice than waste?

The words ravage and waste are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, ravage implies violent often cumulative depredation and destruction.

a hurricane ravaged the coast

In what contexts can sack take the place of waste?

The synonyms sack and waste are sometimes interchangeable, but sack implies carrying off all valuable possessions from a place.

barbarians sacked ancient Rome

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of waste
Noun
Brown is the gold standard, produced when enzymes chemically alter waste during digestion. — Hanna Wickes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Aug. 2026 Though two roaches died next to an oil filter, the roaches also marked their territory with waste. — David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 28 Aug. 2026
Verb
When Rompola killed his giant buck in 1998, Calderone didn’t waste any time calling it fake after seeing photos of the deer. — Richard P. Smith, Outdoor Life, 27 Aug. 2026 Spraying the whole plant—the leaves and stems—means some water is being wasted because plants need water near their roots. — Lauren David, Southern Living, 27 Aug. 2026
Adjective
Plastic’s core problem is not waste; it’s designed to be indestructible. — Vishal Vivek, Forbes.com, 6 Feb. 2026 Local laws and supplier audits The OECD has called on Shein to publish further public information about its compliance with France’s anti-waste law (AGEC), which aims to move businesses toward greater circularity. — Meghan Hall, Sourcing Journal, 1 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for waste
Recent Examples of Synonyms for waste
  1. wastefulness
  2. garbage
  3. desert
  4. dung
  5. expansion
  6. erosion
  7. spend
  8. ruin
Noun
  • Your hard truth is less likely to change her mind than to start an argument about the wastefulness of taking two cars.
    — Judith Martin, Mercury News, 12 Aug. 2026
  • For all his wastefulness, those games have still brought 54 goals, a one-in-three ratio.
    — Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 21 July 2026
Definition of wastefulness
Noun
  • William Gottlieb’s suit also notes that Urban Zen hosts catered gatherings that generate food garbage, therefore creating fodder for the rats.
    — Matthew Sedacca, Curbed, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Once on the first floor, state police found that this area of the home was also cluttered with various things as well as large black garbage bags filled with unknown items, the search warrant said.
    — Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of garbage
Noun
  • Thousands of people began flooding through the entrance gates at midnight for the annual event in which participants create Black Rock City from scratch in the desert about 80 miles north of Reno.
    — Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Pressing the Gravity’s DreamDrive button (located on the steering wheel), for instance, drove me from the Northridge area in northwest Los Angeles to the high desert north of Castaic, California (about a 25-mile drive).
    — Brooke Crothers, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of desert
Noun
  • Behind the cookline equipment, the rodent dung shared space with 20 dead roaches.
    — David J. Neal July 24, Miami Herald, 24 July 2026
  • When not elbow-deep in dino dung or outrunning raptors, Laura Dern's heartfelt performance in Jurassic Park shows why women really deserve to inherit the Earth — and all of the acting awards.
    — Huntley Woods, Entertainment Weekly, 11 June 2026
Definition of dung
Noun
  • Bhatia said investors are now seeing opportunities for revenue growth at Salesforce increasing from the low double digits, along with margin expansion.
    — Jordan Novet, CNBC, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Trump remains data-center booster amid bipartisan opposition The rapid expansion of data centers, which house networks and services for digital information and services, is proving to be the rare issue that cuts through party lines.
    — Joey Garrison, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of expansion
Noun
  • Not Mulching Soil needs to be covered to retain moisture and prevent erosion.
    — Lauren David, Southern Living, 27 Aug. 2026
  • By the twentieth century, intensive farming practices had left the South dangerously vulnerable to erosion, producing depleted swaths of land where kudzu would later flourish.
    — The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of erosion
Verb
  • Robert spent the prior six years with Chicago, hitting 38 home runs and stealing 20 bases in 2023, his best season and lone All-Star appearance.
    — Will Sammon, New York Times, 30 Aug. 2026
  • While higher earners had been spending more using credit cards, the institute said the gap across income classes began narrowing in May of this year.
    — Alex Harring, CNBC, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of spend
Verb
  • But if clouds ruin your view — or the moon is below the horizon at the time of the eclipse — there's no need to fret!
    — Anthony Wood, Space.com, 26 Aug. 2026
  • The news of the relationship almost ruined the church, which quickly began hemorrhaging members.
    — CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of ruin

Phrases Containing waste

Browse Nearby Words

wastages
waste
waste (away)
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Cite this Entry

“Waste.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/waste. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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