Synonyms of profligate

profligate 1 of 2

adjective

ˈprä-fli-gət 

as in wasteful

given to spending money freely or foolishly

profligate movie producers hoping to create the next blockbuster

Synonyms & Similar Words

• wasteful
• spendthrift
• extravagant
• generous
• prodigal
• unthrifty
• liberal
• high-rolling
• reckless
• careless
• thriftless
• lavish
• squandering
• philanthropic
• improvident
• bountiful
• munificent
• injudicious
• imprudent
• heedless
• unselfish
• unstinting
• myopic
• shortsighted
• incautious
• charitable
• bighearted
• openhanded
• indulgent
• openhearted
• unsparing
• unwise
• freehanded
• self-indulgent
• wanton
• splurging
• freehearted

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• economical
• frugal
• thrifty
• conserving
• miserly
• parsimonious
• stingy
• cheap
• spare
• penurious
• tightfisted
• sparing
• tight
• judicious
• careful
• penny-pinching
• prudent
• mean
• economizing
• close
• sensible
• wise
• pinching
• scrimping
• skimping
• stinting
• provident
• farsighted
• foresighted
• forehanded
• closefisted
• foreseeing
• forethoughtful

profligate

2 of 2

noun

ˈprä-fli-gət 

1

as in spendthrift

someone who spends money freely or foolishly

a profligate who could not really afford the grand style he maintained at Monticello, Jefferson died deeply in debt

Synonyms & Similar Words

• spendthrift
• wastrel
• prodigal
• spender
• waster
• dissipate
• squanderer
• high roller
• fritterer

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• economizer
• miser
• skinflint
• cheapskate
• tightwad
• saver
• piker
• penny-pincher
• conserver
• scrooge

2

as in degenerate

a person who has sunk below the normal moral standard

a drunken profligate, he was given to wretched excess in every aspect of his life

Synonyms & Similar Words

• degenerate
• pervert
• libertine
• rake
• villain
• playboy
• deviate
• backslider
• debauchee
• debaucher
• derelict
• rakehell
• decadent
• delinquent
• rip
• perv
• bankrupt
• reprobate
• scoundrel
• heel
• blackguard
• cad
• knave
• rogue
• incorrigible
• rascal
• sicko
• satyr
• lecher
• miscreant
• sickie
• playgirl

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• saint

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of profligate

Adjective

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, 23 July 2026

Avoid the impulse to label someone as cheap or profligate after one or two dates, AARP advises. — Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 6 June 2026

Noun

As nouveau riche neighbor Yermolái (Lance Gardner) tries to impress upon the profligate Liubóv that her property is in arrears and about to be auctioned off, the rules and tone of their world still seem unsettled under the direction of Carey Perloff. — Theater Critic, San Francisco Chronicle, 5 Feb. 2026

In some ways, the game was set up for him, with Villa profligate but still regularly creating chances. — Jacob Tanswell, The Athletic, 18 Aug. 2024

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