Log in or Sign up

Definitions

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

  1. n. One who wastes, especially one who wastes money; a profligate.
  2. n. An idler or a loafer.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

  1. n. Anything cast away as spoiled in the making, or bad; waste; refuse.
  2. n. Anything allowed to run to waste. Specifically— Waste land; a common. Carew, Survey of Cornwall, fol. 13.
  3. n. A profligate.

Wiktionary

  1. n. One who is profligate, who wastes time or resources extravagantly.

GNU Webster's 1913

  1. n. Any waste thing or substance.
  2. n. Waste land or common land.
  3. n. A profligate.
  4. n. A neglected child; a street Arab.
  5. n. Anything cast away as bad or useless, as imperfect bricks, china, etc.

WordNet 3.0

  1. n. someone who dissipates resources self-indulgently

Etymologies

  1. wast(e) + -rel (as in scoundrel).

Examples

Lists

These user-created lists contain the word ‘wastrel’.

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • frogapplause Go birch yourself, yarb. Feb 26, 2010

  • yarb I am the village wastrel. Feb 26, 2010

  • frogapplause Yarb birched the village wastrel. Feb 26, 2010

  • madmouth almost synonymous with 'rich man's son' Apr 13, 2009

  • nicsims a wasteful person Sep 16, 2007

‘wastrel’ has been looked up 2410 times, loved by 9 people, added to 80 lists, commented on 5 times, and has a Scrabble score of 10.