as in wasteful
given to spending money freely or foolishly
the nightclub's ridiculous prices seem geared to squandering revelers with more money than sense
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in wastefulness
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Dissimilar Words
1
as in spending
to use up carelessly
squandered all her money gambling in casinos
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in dispersing
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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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of squandering
Sally Jenkins, The Atlantic, 5 Feb. 2026
Kiké Hernández followed with a flyout to complete the squandering.
—Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2025
Meghan Montemurro, Chicago Tribune, 14 May 2026
And be terrified of squandering it and hurting themselves much more than limiting player salaries would help them.
—Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 7 May 2026
Middlesbrough hit back immediately with a 43rd-minute equalizer but Wrexham finished the stronger, squandering a string of great late chances for a winner that would have secured a playoff place on goal difference.
—Steve Douglas, Los Angeles Times, 2 May 2026
Houston looked good from the start in this one after squandering a six-point lead in the final 26 seconds of regulation in a devastating 112-108 overtime loss Friday night.
—CBS News, 27 Apr. 2026
The gravity of the Game 2 loss, squandering homecourt advantage, is finally clobbering them over the head.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 26 Apr. 2026
In 2005 his team failed to add a second Champions League title after squandering a 3–0 lead versus Liverpool FC to lose on penalties in one of the most dramatic finals in the competition’s history.
—Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 Apr. 2026
Jason Dickinson also scored twice for the Oilers, who trailed 3-2 entering the third after squandering a 2-0 lead.
—ABC News, 21 Apr. 2026
The Nuggets won a thriller on Christmas in Denver, squandering a lead late in the fourth quarter, courtesy of an Edwards triple at the end of regulation, only to then rally themselves to steal the game in overtime.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 17 Apr. 2026
Noun
This is the sort of managerial aimlessness the Post is being governed by, just one example of the missteps and squandering of opportunity framed as strategy.
—Sally Jenkins, The Atlantic, 5 Feb. 2026
Kiké Hernández followed with a flyout to complete the squandering.
—Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2025
Verb
During the four-game skid, the Cubs have gone 1-for-27 with RISP while squandering 25 baserunners.
—Meghan Montemurro, Chicago Tribune, 14 May 2026
And be terrified of squandering it and hurting themselves much more than limiting player salaries would help them.
—Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 7 May 2026
Middlesbrough hit back immediately with a 43rd-minute equalizer but Wrexham finished the stronger, squandering a string of great late chances for a winner that would have secured a playoff place on goal difference.
—Steve Douglas, Los Angeles Times, 2 May 2026
Houston looked good from the start in this one after squandering a six-point lead in the final 26 seconds of regulation in a devastating 112-108 overtime loss Friday night.
—CBS News, 27 Apr. 2026
The gravity of the Game 2 loss, squandering homecourt advantage, is finally clobbering them over the head.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 26 Apr. 2026
In 2005 his team failed to add a second Champions League title after squandering a 3–0 lead versus Liverpool FC to lose on penalties in one of the most dramatic finals in the competition’s history.
—Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 Apr. 2026
Jason Dickinson also scored twice for the Oilers, who trailed 3-2 entering the third after squandering a 2-0 lead.
—ABC News, 21 Apr. 2026
The Nuggets won a thriller on Christmas in Denver, squandering a lead late in the fourth quarter, courtesy of an Edwards triple at the end of regulation, only to then rally themselves to steal the game in overtime.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 17 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for squandering
Adjective
-
At the same time, a growing backlash has taken shape among conservatives in recent months, casting the programs as wasteful and vulnerable to abuse.—
Mike Hixenbaugh,
NBC news,
15 May 2026
-
But despite eons of evolution, plants are surprisingly wasteful.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
14 May 2026
Noun
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Sure enough, Spurs’ wastefulness was punished.—
Jack Pitt-Brooke,
New York Times,
12 May 2026
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Gabriel also acknowledged lawmakers’ responsibility to oversee state spending seriously as well, and would be scrutinizing government programs for wastefulness.—
Andrew Graham,
Sacbee.com,
13 Jan. 2026
Verb
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His lips were sunburned after spending three days leading a group down the Rio Grande.—
Rachel Monroe,
New Yorker,
14 May 2026
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Now the company seeks to expand on last year’s win by spending vast sums — putting up more than $70 million so far — on a California ballot measure campaign to cap attorney fees in car crash cases.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
13 May 2026
Verb
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Experts and congressional aides have said that Iran was likely able to preserve some of its arsenal by deploying decoys and dispersing weapons around the country.—
Kayla Hayempour,
NBC news,
1 May 2026
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Johnson mentioned the possibility of Mexican wolves dispersing into Texas from the Mexican Wolf Experimental Population Area, which covers portions of Arizona and New Mexico south of Interstate 40.—
Dac Collins,
Outdoor Life,
30 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Such profligacy slows real income growth, deters hiring, discourages innovation and drives up interest rates.—
Editorial,
Boston Herald,
30 Mar. 2026
-
Such profligacy slows real income growth, deters hiring, discourages innovation and drives up interest rates.—
Bloomberg Opinion,
Twin Cities,
29 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The rest of the production had been much harder—particularly because, to his frustration, he’d been forced to film primarily in Atlanta rather than in Oakland, after a year of maddening delays led to the production losing its California tax rebate.—
Emily Nussbaum,
New Yorker,
17 May 2026
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The Wolves were wiped out by the Spurs in the second round, losing Game 6 by 30 points on Friday night.—
Jon Krawczynski,
New York Times,
17 May 2026
Noun
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To measure overall turbulence, Turbli used a metric called the eddy dissipation rate, or EDR, to assign turbulence level scores.—
Michael Cappetta,
Travel + Leisure,
12 May 2026
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Brembo says the discs have been designed for rapid heat dissipation, while the mineral oil's viscosity remains stable across a wide range of temperatures.—
Abhimanyu Ghoshal,
New Atlas,
1 May 2026
Verb
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The new pistachio cheesecake began popping up in Costco bakery sections nationwide a few weeks ago, and customers online are wasting no time sharing the exciting news across social media.—
Kait Hanson,
Southern Living,
18 May 2026
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This is just one of many instances of the DOJ wasting taxpayer dollars on political posturing.—
DP Opinion,
Denver Post,
18 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Squandering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/squandering. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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