WASTE Synonyms: 453 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the verb 'waste' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of waste are despoil , devastate , pillage , ravage , and sack . While all these words mean "to lay waste by plundering or destroying," waste may imply producing the same result by a slow process rather than sudden and violent action. // years of drought had wasted the area

Q: When would 'despoil' be a good substitute for 'waste'?

In some situations, the words despoil and waste are roughly equivalent. However, despoil applies to looting or robbing without suggesting accompanying destruction. // the Nazis despoiled the art museums

Q: When is it sensible to use 'devastate' instead of 'waste'?

Although the words devastate and waste have much in common, devastate implies the complete ruin and desolation of a wide area. // an earthquake devastated the city

Q: How are the words 'pillage' and 'sack' related as synonyms of 'waste'?

Pillage implies ruthless plundering at will but without the completeness suggested by sack . // settlements pillaged by Vikings

Q: When is 'ravage' a more appropriate choice than 'waste'?

The words ravage and waste are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, ravage implies violent often cumulative depredation and destruction. // a hurricane ravaged the coast

Q: In what contexts can 'sack' take the place of 'waste'?

The synonyms sack and waste are sometimes interchangeable, but sack implies carrying off all valuable possessions from a place. // barbarians sacked ancient Rome

waste 1 of 3

noun

ˈwāst

Definition of waste

as in wastefulness

an instance of spending money or resources without care or restraint it seems like a waste to spend my entire paycheck on a bigger TV

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as in garbage

discarded or useless material gathered up the waste when he was finished sewing

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as in desert

land that is uninhabited or not fit for crops an area that was a barren waste after the strip-mining had ended

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as in dung

solid matter discharged from an animal's alimentary canal a local ordinance requiring dog owners to properly dispose of their pet's waste

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as in expansion

a wide space or area a legendary mariner doomed to sail the watery wastes of the world until Judgment Day

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as in erosion

a gradual weakening, loss, or destruction the slow waste of the once broad beach by the relentless tide

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

waste

2 of 3

verb

as in to spend

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

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as in to ruin

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

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as in to weaken

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

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

waste

3 of 3

adjective

as in barren

producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation waste acreage that was not fit for anything

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb waste contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of waste are despoil, devastate, pillage, ravage, and sack. While all these words mean "to lay waste by plundering or destroying," waste may imply producing the same result by a slow process rather than sudden and violent action.

years of drought had wasted the area

When would despoil be a good substitute for waste?

In some situations, the words despoil and waste are roughly equivalent. However, despoil applies to looting or robbing without suggesting accompanying destruction.

the Nazis despoiled the art museums

When is it sensible to use devastate instead of waste?

Although the words devastate and waste have much in common, devastate implies the complete ruin and desolation of a wide area.

an earthquake devastated the city

How are the words pillage and sack related as synonyms of waste?

Pillage implies ruthless plundering at will but without the completeness suggested by sack.

settlements pillaged by Vikings

When is ravage a more appropriate choice than waste?

The words ravage and waste are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, ravage implies violent often cumulative depredation and destruction.

a hurricane ravaged the coast

In what contexts can sack take the place of waste?

The synonyms sack and waste are sometimes interchangeable, but sack implies carrying off all valuable possessions from a place.

barbarians sacked ancient Rome

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 waste

Noun

This system removes salt and other contaminants while turning the brine into solids, using almost all waste heat. — Muskan Bhatia, Interesting Engineering, 23 Oct. 2026 Some communities have specific rules for bagging, bundling or cutting yard debris to size, so check with your local waste hauler before putting it out for collection. — Sacbee.com, 22 Oct. 2026

Verb

If Republicans lose big next month, there’ll be a brawl to assign blame — which consultants blew it, which ads wasted money, which issues didn’t work. — David Weigel, semafor.com, 21 Oct. 2026 If that is impossible for systems much larger than atoms, many of humanity’s current technological efforts would be wasted. — Philipp Strasberg, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026

Adjective

Plastic’s core problem is not waste; it’s designed to be indestructible. — Vishal Vivek, Forbes.com, 6 Feb. 2026 Local laws and supplier audits The OECD has called on Shein to publish further public information about its compliance with France’s anti-waste law (AGEC), which aims to move businesses toward greater circularity. — Meghan Hall, Sourcing Journal, 1 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for waste

Recent Examples of Synonyms for waste

Noun

Such wastefulness in the first half prevented Louisiana from dragging USC into a dogfight.

— CBS News, CBS News, 13 Sep. 2026
Your hard truth is less likely to change her mind than to start an argument about the wastefulness of taking two cars.

— Judith Martin, Mercury News, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of wastefulness

Noun

What makes a successful scooper Professional scoopers typically use basic tools like a rake, a dustpan lined with a garbage bag and a garden sprayer to sanitize tools in between jobs.

— Kamaron McNair, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2026
Pan Yan The substance is integrated into a transparent, medium-sized insert designed to fit onto a garbage bin lid.

— Maryna Holovnova, New Atlas, 19 Oct. 2026

Definition of garbage

Noun

From desolate deserts to cut-off civilisations, wild and remote destinations are emerging as the places travellers will be talking about most in 2027.

— Luke Abrahams, Vogue, 27 Oct. 2026
But their luck evaporated in the desert, where the Diamondbacks discovered some magic of their own.

— Don Riddell, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2026

Definition of desert

Noun

During the first re-inspection, the inspector saw about 10 pieces of rodent dung under the air-conditioning unit, seven in the hallway by the back door and three under storage by the hallway bathroom.

— David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 25 Sep. 2026
In southern India, for example, villagers are allowing – and even paying – herders to use their land in exchange for dung, the natural fertilizer that farmers need to produce higher-value organic crops.

— The Christian Science Monitor, Christian Science Monitor, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of dung

Noun

The Valkyries made history in their inaugural season, becoming the first WNBA expansion team to reach the playoffs in its debut year.

— Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2026
Scaling hypersonic composites The expansion comes alongside a broader push to strengthen the US industrial base for hypersonic systems.

— Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of expansion

Noun

As a super El Niño intensifies in the Pacific Ocean, coastal beach erosion is devastating Southern California and beyond.

— Devika Rao, TheWeek, 23 Oct. 2026
In the hundreds of millions of years since the initial impact, erosion has continued to carve this formation into its current, signature shape.

— Chelsea Gohd, Space.com, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of erosion

Verb

Successful candidates will then be invited to spend a day at the bank’s offices where they are tested on banking regulation, their use of AI, and their ability to build calculations.

— Sam Birchall, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026
The Finnish Government has granted Posiva Oy an operating license for the world’s first permanent underground repository for spent nuclear fuel.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of spend

Verb

One accidental move could ruin the attempt, requiring a correction at best, and a possible restart at worst.

— Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 25 Oct. 2026
Others have used it to remove oily stains from their toddlers like crayon marks on carpet, and one reviewer says it’s saved many of their clothes from being ruined in a household with unavoidable messes from both kids and pets.

— Caley Sturgill, Southern Living, 25 Oct. 2026

Definition of ruin

Cite this Entry

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“Waste.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/waste. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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adjective

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