as in spending
to use up carelessly
warned that a childhood spent hanging around indoors was a misspent youth indeed
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of misspending
There are literally a million better ways to stop food waste than partnering with a family that has been convicted of felonies for misspending nonprofit money.
—
Emily Barnes, USA Today, 24 Sep. 2025
Emily Barnes, USA Today, 24 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for misspending
Verb
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To be sure, the AI boom could deliver that revenue surge—but even slight weakening in spending growth across the industry could hit CoreWeave disproportionately.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
8 Nov. 2025
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For example, financial therapist Aja Evans recommends leaning into self-care activities that cost little to no money, like going outside and spending time with family and friends.—
Gili Malinsky,
CNBC,
8 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The Buffalo Bills followed up an impressive win over the Kansas City Chiefs, their long-time AFC nemesis, with an almost inexplicable flop against the Miami Dolphins in Week 10, losing 30-13 on the road.—
Max Dible,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Nov. 2025
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When considering improvement, Berzin suggests focusing on changing the ratio of muscle to fat rather than simply losing weight.—
Alexa Mikhail,
Flow Space,
10 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Misspending.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/misspending. Accessed 15 Nov. 2025.
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