2
: one who expends resources foolishly and self-indulgently : profligate
Synonyms
Examples of wastrel in a Sentence
the black sheep of the family, he ended up being a wastrel and a drunkard
Recent Examples on the Web
Henry Muck, suitably nicknamed Prince Hal by his family and friends, may be Industry’s version of the ultimate privileged wastrel.
—
Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 27 Aug. 2024
Atay lingers on the outskirts, keeping the company of workers and wastrels, poets and drunks—all those who refuse the monumental transformations of Turkish society.
—Merve Emre, The New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2024
Casting is everything; Minghella arranges for his most handsome performer, Jude Law, to play Dickie Greenleaf, the wealthy wastrel whom Ripley (Matt Damon) slays and then seeks to replace.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 11 Apr. 2024
The aforementioned wastrel friend, now a drug dealer, asks Mike to do him a favor: Deliver a briefcase of pot to a hotel room.
—Time, 11 Aug. 2023
See all Example Sentences for wastrel 
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.
Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 27 Aug. 2024
Atay lingers on the outskirts, keeping the company of workers and wastrels, poets and drunks—all those who refuse the monumental transformations of Turkish society.
—Merve Emre, The New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2024
Casting is everything; Minghella arranges for his most handsome performer, Jude Law, to play Dickie Greenleaf, the wealthy wastrel whom Ripley (Matt Damon) slays and then seeks to replace.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 11 Apr. 2024
The aforementioned wastrel friend, now a drug dealer, asks Mike to do him a favor: Deliver a briefcase of pot to a hotel room.
—Time, 11 Aug. 2023
See all Example Sentences for wastrel
Dictionary Entries Near wastrel
Cite this Entry
“Wastrel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wastrel. Accessed 24 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
wastrel
noun
wast·rel
ˈwā-strəl 
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share