1
as in spends
to use up carelessly
squandered all her money gambling in casinos
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in disperses
to cause (members of a group) to move widely apart
a single blast of the shotgun squandered the herd of deer
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of squanders
Trapping individuals in endless cycles of exclusion and financial hardship squanders potential, reduces tax revenue and widens disparities.
—
Brian Fabes, Chicago Tribune, 24 Apr. 2026
Too bad, because along the way Borgli squanders some fine performances.
—Moira MacDonald, Twin Cities, 4 Apr. 2026
However, while singular moments are presented with clarity, the film often squanders its emotional momentum.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 12 Mar. 2026
Instead, the movie squanders Knight’s talent for delivery and hands him an awkward slapstick bit that feels like work just to watch.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 5 Dec. 2025
Either the Broncos offense wakes up, or this team squanders all of the goodwill from beating the Eagles last week.
—Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 12 Oct. 2025
But Team Blue ultimately squanders their lead, completely botching the puzzle as the other two tribes smoke theirs.
—Nick Caruso, TVLine, 1 Oct. 2025
Brian Fabes, Chicago Tribune, 24 Apr. 2026
Too bad, because along the way Borgli squanders some fine performances.
—Moira MacDonald, Twin Cities, 4 Apr. 2026
However, while singular moments are presented with clarity, the film often squanders its emotional momentum.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 12 Mar. 2026
Instead, the movie squanders Knight’s talent for delivery and hands him an awkward slapstick bit that feels like work just to watch.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 5 Dec. 2025
Either the Broncos offense wakes up, or this team squanders all of the goodwill from beating the Eagles last week.
—Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 12 Oct. 2025
But Team Blue ultimately squanders their lead, completely botching the puzzle as the other two tribes smoke theirs.
—Nick Caruso, TVLine, 1 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for squanders
Verb
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Research from It’s Time To Log Off found that the average person spends one full day each week online, while 34% of people had checked Facebook within the last 10 minutes.—
Hanna Wickes,
Kansas City Star,
16 May 2026
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Research from It’s Time To Log Off found the average person spends one full day each week online, while 34% of people had checked Facebook within the last 10 minutes.—
Hanna Wickes,
Miami Herald,
16 May 2026
Verb
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Rodighiero and her team already have their suspicions about how the red and blue monsters can coexist in the early universe—perhaps the blue galaxies are in fact born from the red ones as the dust disperses.—
Jenna Ahart,
Scientific American,
30 Apr. 2026
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Criminalization disperses suffering, while prevention reduces suffering.—
Ray Bramson,
Washington Post,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Also, the president's party typically loses seats in midterm elections.—
Maureen Groppe,
USA Today,
15 May 2026
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The deeper the water, the sooner a vehicle loses traction on the road.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
15 May 2026
Verb
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Fix the part that wastes the most energy first.—
Tarot.com,
Chicago Tribune,
17 May 2026
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Each conversion slows the system and wastes energy.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
16 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Squanders.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/squanders. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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