Waste
WordNet
adjective
(1) Located in a dismal or remote area; desolate
"A desert island"
"A godforsaken wilderness crossroads"
"A wild stretch of land"
"Waste places"
noun
(2) Useless or profitless activity; using or expending or consuming thoughtlessly or carelessly
"If the effort brings no compensating gain it is a waste"
"Mindless dissipation of natural resources"
(3) (law) reduction in the value of an estate caused by act or neglect
(4) The trait of wasting resources
"A life characterized by thriftlessness and waste"
"The wastefulness of missed opportunities"
(5) An uninhabited wilderness that is worthless for cultivation
"The barrens of central Africa"
"The trackless wastes of the desert"
(6) Any materials unused and rejected as worthless or unwanted
"They collect the waste once a week"
"Much of the waste material is carried off in the sewers"
verb
(7) Waste away
"Political prisoners are wasting away in many prisons all over the world"
(8) Devastate or ravage
"The enemy lay waste to the countryside after the invasion"
(9) Cause to grow thin or weak
"The treatment emaciated him"
(10) Lose vigor, health, or flesh, as through grief
"After her husband died, she just pined away"
(11) Spend extravagantly
"Waste not, want not"
(12) Use inefficiently or inappropriately
"Waste heat"
"Waste a joke on an unappreciative audience"
(13) Get rid of (someone who may be a threat) by killing
"The mafia liquidated the informer"
"The double agent was neutralized"
(14) Run off as waste
"The water wastes back into the ocean"
(15) Get rid of
"We waste the dirty water by channeling it into the sewer"
(16) Spend thoughtlessly; throw away
"He wasted his inheritance on his insincere friends"
"You squandered the opportunity to get and advanced degree"
WiktionaryText
Etymology
from from Old North French wast(e) (compare Old French ) of Germanic origin akin to Old Frankish }, Old Frankish , Old High German. , Old English , Old English , Old English . Vowel a in word possibly influenced by related forms in Latin (eg. vastum), but otherwise accounted for in normal development in Old French (compare Old French o > a in dongier > ; donter > danter "to daunt", etc.)
Noun
- A waste land; an uninhabited desolate region; a wilderness.
- A place that has been laid waste or destroyed.
- A large tract of uncultivated land.
- A vast expanse of water.
- A disused mine or part of one.
- The action or progress of wasting; extravagant consumption or ineffectual use.
- That was a waste of time
- Her life seemed a waste
- Large abundance of something, especially without it being used.
- Gradual loss or decay.
- A decaying of the body by disease; wasting away.
- Destruction or devastation caused by war or natural disasters; See "to lay waste"
- Excess of material, useless by-products or damaged, unsaleable products; garbage; rubbish.
- Excrement (animal waste, human waste).
- A cause of action which may be brought by the owner of a future interest in property against the current owner of that property to prevent the current owner from degrading the value or character of the property, either intentionally or through neglect.
Adjective
- Uncultivated or unhabited; barren; desert.
- Rejected as being defective; eliminated as being worthless; produced in excess.
- Superfluous; needless.
- Unfortunate; Disappointing.