WASTING Synonyms: 304 Similar and Opposite Words

wasting 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of wasting

as in wasteful

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wasting

2 of 2

verb

present participle of waste

as in spending

to use up carelessly he wasted his lottery winnings on booze-soaked nights with gold diggers

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in destroying

to bring to a complete end the physical soundness, existence, or usefulness of one country attempting to waste another

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in weakening

to diminish the physical strength of endless months of inactivity wasted him

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 wasting

Verb

Advertisement Buy portions that match your appetite Throwing away part of a chicken breast means wasting more than dinner. — Angela Haupt, Time, 16 Oct. 2026 Chronicling the hyper-niche behaviors that define our online existence, Berlant describes the seemingly inescapable embarrassment of wasting one’s life away in an endless scroll. — Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026 Companies ‘wasting money’ on AI experimentation Tan’s concerns also extend to the companies paying to use AI. — Mia Osmonbekov, Fortune, 15 Oct. 2026 Each drinks from an enormous glass bottle of water rather than wasting time with a cup. — Emily Zemler, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026 But Hurts threw incomplete on first down, wasting only four seconds and stopping the clock. — ABC News, 12 Oct. 2026 House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) said on Thursday that Republicans were wasting money by targeting two House seats held by vulnerable Democrats in the state of New York. — Lauren Green, The Washington Examiner, 8 Oct. 2026 Identifying the cause of your hair loss first is what keeps you from wasting money on the wrong product, according to Kazlouskaya. — Hanna Wickes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 Oct. 2026 Each boy, age 13 and 12 respectively, has Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a rare, fatal muscle-wasting disease. — Theresa Gaffney, STAT, 7 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for wasting

Adjective

Supporters say the measure aims to cut wasteful government spending by requiring audits for new state special taxes.

— Queenie Wong, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026
Congressional Republicans got rid of the EV tax credit last year after long arguing that markets, not the government, should influence what Americans drive, and dubbed the tax credit wasteful spending.

— Willa Rubin, NPR, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of wasteful

Verb

After arriving at the hospital and spending nearly an hour with hospital staff filling out paperwork, I was handed another form accepting financial responsibility.

— Scott Levenson, New York Daily News, 18 Oct. 2026
Teams are tight-knit, spending practically every moment together from Spring Training through October in what can be described as a 162-game marathon.

— Don Riddell, CNN Money, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of spending

Verb

Hurricane Isaias made landfall as a Category 2 hurricane on Saturday, spawning tornadoes, destroying buildings and downing power lines across the Gulf region.

— Mary Randolph, Scientific American, 13 Oct. 2026
Israeli soldiers filmed themselves in high definition laughing, looting homes, destroying entire rows of buildings, humiliating civilians, even killing them.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of destroying

Verb

Mortgage demand continues to drop sharply, as buyers face higher prices and weakening affordability.

— Diana Olick, CNBC, 14 Oct. 2026
The upper-level trough over the western United States will gradually advance eastward, weakening the influence of the ridge that has kept us hot and relatively dry.

— Michael Autovino, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of weakening

Adjective

Bournemouth were profligate, despite scoring through Marcus Tavernier and forcing a Malick Thiaw own goal, with multiple first-half chances wasted.

— Chris Waugh, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026
This shift occasioned the profligate production that would mark her oeuvre, with Kusama going on to make hundreds of paintings in which forests of lines and dots cradled variously floral and phallic figures.

— News Desk, Artforum, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of profligate

Verb

Atlanta reached the Finals for the first time since 2013 and after losing in its previous three appearances in the championship round, will be trying for their first as well.

— ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026
Tim Boyd San Juan Capistrano I’m sure there are Dodgers fans unhappy about losing to the Brewers.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of losing

Verb

As wet electrodes get thicker, the liquid binder migrates unevenly during drying, ruining the battery‘s structure.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 30 Sep. 2026
Seaver also allegedly threatened to start a podcast dedicated to ruining Parton’s image unless he was paid.

— Allison DeGrushe, StyleCaster, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of ruining

Verb

On that topic of change, McIlroy began softening his stance about LIV players returning to the PGA Tour months ago.

— Mark Harris OutKick, FOXNews.com, 14 Oct. 2026
The milestone arrives at a precarious time for Australia’s festival sector, which has seen a wave of cancellations and closures in recent years amid rising costs and softening ticket sales.

— Jessica Lynch, Billboard, 13 Oct. 2026