Synonyms of wasteful

wasteful

adjective

ˈwāst-fəl 

as in extravagant

given to spending money freely or foolishly

my one wasteful child always seemed to run out of money by midweek

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

Examples of wasteful in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Republican case against the Inflation Reduction Act hinges on the argument that the spending is wasteful and benefits China. —Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 5 Sep. 2024

Fraud charges In 2016, prosecutors said Gordhan would face two fraud charges for illegally approving the early retirement of a subordinate, resulting in 1.1 million rand ($61,000) of wasteful expenditure. —Mike Cohen / Bloomberg, TIME, 13 Sep. 2024

At the same time, Washington should husband its resources, expending them as efficiently as possible and convincing Kyiv to avoid large, wasteful offensives. —Peter Schroeder, Foreign Affairs, 3 Sep. 2024

Directed donations One factor in Illinois’ out-of-control campaign spending began more than 40 years ago as a good-government effort to reduce wasteful state expenditures. —Rick Pearson, Chicago Tribune, 1 Sep. 2024