WASTING Synonyms: 304 Similar and Opposite Words

wasting 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of wasting

as in wasteful

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Dissimilar Words

wasting

2 of 2

verb

present participle of waste

as in spending

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in destroying

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in weakening

to diminish the physical strength of endless months of inactivity wasted him

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 wasting

Verb

After scoring the game’s first run in the top of the 10th, the Angels gave up two with two outs in the bottom of the inning, losing to the Texas Rangers, 2-1, on Friday night, once again wasting a scoreless start from Reid Detmers. — Jeff Fletcher, Oc Register, 22 Aug. 2026 Personalize Outreach To Dream Customers Stop wasting your tiny budget trying to scream at a cold, massive audience. — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026 Hurzeler singled out David Raya for criticism over time-wasting when the Arsenal goalkeeper went down for treatment in the second half of that March encounter. — Andy Naylor, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2026 Skeptics say such psychic profilers do more harm than good by wasting police resources and exploiting grieving families. — Amanda Musa, CNN Money, 16 Aug. 2026 But the speedy predators have been unable to outrun a wasting disease that's killed billions of sea stars. — John Ryan, NPR, 16 Aug. 2026 Instead of tackling these problems with millions in available funds, the City halted repairs, wasting money and time to explore a move. — Matthew Ablon, CBS News, 12 Aug. 2026 Both of these smart systems allow homeowners to ensure their lawns or gardens are hydrated without wasting water. — Nafeesah Allen, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Aug. 2026 In recent years, an awful muscle-wasting disease — inclusion-body myositis — has robbed Krukow of his physical mobility. — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 6 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for wasting

Adjective

Take a look at who is spending tax money responsibly — on ballfields, water-quality projects, help for victims of crime, no-kill animal shelters and other popular priorities — and who is being wasteful.

— Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 23 Aug. 2026
Republican response But conservatives said those policies inflated enrollment by attracting fraudulent and wasteful coverage.

— Christine Mai-Duc, NPR, 23 Aug. 2026

Definition of wasteful

Verb

Willy Kurniawan | Reuters Indonesia may have trouble meeting its economic-growth goals for the coming year, after spending 2026 on the defensive amid questions about fiscal outlays and the prospects of a downgrade from MSCI.

— Celestine Iyer, CNBC, 26 Aug. 2026
For now, the Coalition for Prediction Markets is spending a fraction of Kalshi’s direct lobbying expenses.

— Dan Bernstein, Sportico.com, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of spending

Verb

Pumping at high speeds creates a suction vortex (upconing) that violently draws heavy sludge into the production stream, fouling piping and destroying surface pumps.

— Siddharth Misra, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2026
The tornado wreaked havoc in the village of 1,000 inhabitants, reducing homes to rubble and destroying numerous cars.

— ABC News, ABC News, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of destroying

Verb

Throughout this year, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has been weakening the Navy’s leadership by blocking the promotion of nearly 20 admirals.

— Andrea N. Goldstein, The Atlantic, 28 Aug. 2026
Wheat futures hit their highest level in more than three years as the war in Ukraine strained supplies, further weakening the global food system.

— Jeronimo Gonzalez, semafor.com, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of weakening

Adjective

This shift occasioned the profligate production that would mark her oeuvre, with Kusama going on to make hundreds of paintings in which forests of lines and dots cradled variously floral and phallic figures.

— News Desk, Artforum, 27 Aug. 2026
Just as life in industrial urban centers in the nineteenth century caused hardship in rural villages, the profligate lifestyles enjoyed by those of us in the Global North are underwritten by the immiseration of those in the Global South.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 July 2026

Definition of profligate

Verb

For a full breakdown of how to clean your bedding without ruining it, refer to AD's guide on how to wash a comforter.

— Yelena Moroz Alpert, Architectural Digest, 24 Aug. 2026
This allegedly caused the cancellation of school recesses, and also ruining weddings and funerals.

— Finnegan Belleau, Chicago Tribune, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of ruining

Verb

That’s because the scent leads with a masculine-leaning opening of almond blossom, pink pepper, and neroli, before softening to its woody vanilla base.

— Ariel Wodarcyk, InStyle, 25 Aug. 2026
Nike had been using Bugs Bunny in a series of commercials starring Michael Jordan as a means of softening the basketball legend’s intense on-court image and marketing his Air Jordans to families.

— Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 25 Aug. 2026