WANTONLY Synonyms: 106 Similar and Opposite Words

wantonly

adverb

Definition of wantonly

as in recklessly

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

as in wastefully

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

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 wantonly But even here, where the damage is being done gleefully and wantonly, the US Congress has stood up to these funding cuts in a bipartisan manner. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 3 July 2026 Likewise, a circumstance all by itself could be the matter of regulating AI makers about allowing their AI to wantonly provide mental health advice. — Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for wantonly

Adverb

Kumar faces two counts of first-degree manslaughter and three counts of recklessly endangering another person in Deschutes County stemming from the fatal wreck.

— Eric Mack , Bill Melugin, FOXNews.com, 26 Oct. 2026
But rushing recklessly into a plan to spend nearly $1 billion in tax revenue would underscore the narrative that the county is too rash in its spending.

— Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of recklessly

Adverb

Considered from one angle, the movie is superficial and conventional, zipping heedlessly between the characters without fretting about point of view, creating scenes that don’t so much illuminate characters as simply push the story along.

— Richard Brody, New Yorker, 9 Sep. 2026
Yet, future relations with Canada will be the bellwether for whether America can recover the critical alliances this administration has heedlessly ripped apart.

— Trudy Rubin, Mercury News, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of heedlessly

Adverb

Longevity helps; if Picasso hadn’t outlived his Blue Period and Guernica by a long stretch of years, he might be dinted today as indulgently moody.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 27 Aug. 2026
There are no indulgently long songs—SUSS record in the present perfect.

— Brian Howe, Pitchfork, 12 May 2026

Definition of indulgently

Adverb

Cohen insists the joke was always on Ali G, not the Black culture the character was so desperately trying to emulate.

— Maxwell Adler, Vanity Fair, 27 Oct. 2026
Fielder played up a version of himself on the show, acting as a dumbly ambitious business school graduate, socially inept and desperately seeking connection.

— Zoe Sottile, CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of desperately

Adverb

Unlike her opponent, Roy grew up comfortably in Monrovia, largely shielded from the sacrifices her family made to afford her an elite education.

— Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
The Bears comfortably beat the Pats, 30-24, improving to 5-2.

— Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of comfortably

Browse Nearby Words

wanton

wantonly

wantonness

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Wantonly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wantonly. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of wantonly

adverb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

shindig

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes