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

Synonyms & Similar Words
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
The city is simply urging you to continue to take all measures to eliminate any fire flare ups and remove the food waste as quickly as possible. — City News Service, Daily News, 4 July 2026 Then, cleaning robots would handle waste detection and room upkeep using AI. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 5 July 2026
Verb
Willis, meanwhile, isn’t wasting anytime preparing to once again command center staged with the group that propelled him to international stardom. — George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 July 2026 While removing the screen and battery means some embodied carbon is still wasted, rescuing the board still represents a massive win for circularity. — New Atlas, 2 July 2026
Adjective
Its 2020 anti-waste law requires unsold nonfood goods to be reused, donated or recycled instead of destroyed. — ABC News, 27 Mar. 2026 Shards of glass and ceramic, rusted metal, medical and bio-waste, syringes, cracked circuit boards, and broken electronics protruded everywhere. — CNN Money, 15 Apr. 2026 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
  • The Bosnia captain got himself an assist, made a goal-line clearance, and was partly responsible for Cyle Larin’s 78th-minute equaliser, which ensured Canada’s wastefulness didn’t stop them from earning a first World Cup point.
    — Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 5 July 2026
  • The humanitarian consequences of this wastefulness were well documented before last Wednesday.
    — Gisela Salim-Peyer, The Atlantic, 1 July 2026
Definition of wastefulness
Noun
  • Decomposing food can release hydrogen sulfide, a toxic gas synonymous with landfills and garbage.
    — Tony Briscoe, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2026
  • Epidemics, worsened by the unsanitary conditions caused by the mountains of garbage the government has stopped collecting, combine with the shortage of medicines and the dire state of medical facilities.
    — Sarah Moreno July 1, Miami Herald, 1 July 2026
Definition of garbage
Noun
  • Sitting on a patch of desert sand, the wind phone created by Colin Campbell and Gail Lerner consists of a wooden box sitting atop a cabinet with a chair nearby.
    — Staff Photographer, Los Angeles Times, 6 July 2026
  • The Exploration Rover for Navigating Extreme Sloped Terrain (ERNEST), developed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, recently completed a 16-mile (26 kilometers) trek through the desert in Southern California.
    — Josh Dinner, Space.com, 5 July 2026
Definition of desert
Noun
  • 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
  • The team ended up with a jar of elephant dung scent.
    — RJ Mackenzie, Popular Science, 11 June 2026
Definition of dung
Noun
  • Continue reading … BENCH BRAWL — Democratic lawmaker calls for SCOTUS expansion, says GOP 'stole' seats.
    — , FOXNews.com, 3 July 2026
  • Depicting the rise and spectacular fall of an Anglo- and Euro-centric civilization, the series was originally presented as an allegorical warning about imperial expansion to the then-young nation.
    — Cat Dawson, ARTnews.com, 3 July 2026
Definition of expansion
Noun
  • Emergency specialists warn that Venezuela lacks the institutional capacity and disaster-management infrastructure typically needed to handle a catastrophe of this scale, particularly amid years of economic collapse and institutional erosion.
    — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 1 July 2026
  • And the story told by the events of that year, and of the decades since, is the story of the slow erosion of congressional power.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 1 July 2026
Definition of erosion
Verb
  • During our time away, our neighbors visited with us at the hospital, looked after our house and came over daily to feed and spend time with our cat.
    — Dawn M. Turner, Chicago Tribune, 5 July 2026
  • American doctors are so conspicuously well-paid that a group of economic researchers spent years trying to figure out why.
    — Daniel de Visé, USA Today, 5 July 2026
Definition of spend
Verb
  • However, for some, gambling is an addiction that can ruin lives and families.
    — Don Sweeney, Sacbee.com, 1 July 2026
  • After all, plenty of cocktail enthusiasts already complain about mosquitoes ruining a summer evening.
    — Emily Price, Forbes.com, 1 July 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 7 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on waste

Nglish: Translation of waste for Spanish Speakers

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