Dictionary

squander en · VERB

Pronunciation

• [ˈskwɒn.də] (UK)
• [ˈskʷɑn.dɚ] (US)
• /ˈskwɑn.dɚ/ (US)
• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈskwɒnd.ə/ (UK)

Etymology

Earliest uses (late 16th c.) "to spend recklessly or prodigiously", also "to scatter over a wide area". Of unknown origin. Perhaps a blend of scatter + wander. Compare Danish skvætte (rare)/skvatte (“to splash”) (nominalised: skvæt), Icelandic skvetta (“to squirt”), Swedish skvätta (“to splash”), Norwegian Bokmål skvette.

Meanings

1. (transitive) To waste, lavish, splurge; to spend lavishly or profusely; to dissipate.
   • Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of.
   • I have squandered money enormously.... I ought to have saved, but saving is not easy in such a whirl of excitement as that in which I have lived. 1886, Cora Pearl, Memoirs:
   • As the game opened up, Bolton squandered a fine opportunity to equalise - Chris Eagles shooting straight at Szczesny - but then back came Arsenal. 2011 September 24, David Ornstein, “Arsenal 3 - 0 Bolton”, in BBC Sport:
   • Don't squander the gold of your days, listening to the tedious, trying to improve the hopeless failure, or giving away your life to the ignorant, the common, and the vulgar. 1890, Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray, page 24:
   • .
2. (obsolete, transitive) To scatter; to disperse.
   • […]our ſquander’d Troops he rallies:[…] 1681, John Dryden, The Spanish Fryar: Or, the Double Discovery. […], London: […] Richard Tonson and Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC, Act I, page 2:
3. (obsolete, transitive) To wander at random; to scatter.
   • […]The Wiſe-mans folly is anathomiz’d / Euen by ſquandring glances of the foole. c. 1598–1600 (date written), William Shakespeare, “As You Like It”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene vii], page 193, column 1:

Forms

Antonyms

conserve · save · hoard

Deriveds

squandersome · squanderlust · squanderer · squandermania · unsquandered · squanderable · Squandergate · squanderation · squanderingly

Synonyms

splurge · slather · play ducks and drakes with · blow · throw away · make ducks and drakes of · waste · lavish

Translations (101)

it scialare (to waste) · la prōdigō (to waste) · hu elfecsérel (to waste) · bg прахосвам (to waste) · mi whakamaumau (to waste) · tr ziyan etmek (to waste) · mk а́рчи (to waste) · sq shkund (to waste) · ja 乱費する (to waste) · eo malŝpari (to waste) · es derrochar (to waste) · fi haaskata (to waste) · mn барах (to waste) · ru разбаза́рить (to waste) · hu eltékozol (to waste) · es dilapidar (to waste) · nl verspillen (to waste) · izh mänettää (to waste) · ru прома́тывать (to waste) · de verschwenden (to waste) · az dağıtmaq (to waste) · fa بر باد دادن (to waste) · ko 낭비하다 (to waste) · pl trwonić (to waste) · ca malgastar (to waste) · ast esbarafundiar (to waste) · ca balafiar (to waste) · ru растра́чивать (to waste) · nl verbrassen (to waste) · it sperperare (to waste) · es malgastar (to waste) · tr çarçur etmek (to waste) · de vergeuden (to waste) · de verprassen (to waste) · fr gâcher (to waste) · nb ødsle (to waste) · ja 浪費する (to waste) · pt esbanjar (to waste) · fi törsätä (to waste) · ru транжи́рить (to waste) · es despilfarrar (to waste) · az korlamaq (to waste) · ca malbaratar (to waste) · dlm dissipur (to waste) · eo disperdi (to waste) · ru растра́тить (to waste) · pl zmarnotrawić (to waste) · tr heba etmek (to waste) · scn vastari (to waste) · az aşırmaq (to waste) · cmn 揮霍 /挥霍 (to waste) · hu elherdál (to waste) · es despalillar (to waste) · bg пропилея (to waste) · ru промота́ть (to waste) · hu elpocsékol (to waste) · mi whakapau (to waste) · pl roztrwonić (to waste) · it dissipare (to waste) · la helluor (to waste) · nb ødsle bort (to waste) · bg пропилявам (to waste) · sv slösa (to waste) · fr gaspiller (to waste) · ca desaprofitar (to waste) · nl verkwanselen (to waste) · it dilapidare (to waste) · ko 랑비하다 (to waste) · pl zmarnować (to waste) · ja 使い尽くす (to waste) · ru расточи́ть (to waste) · es desaprovechar (to waste) · es desperdiciar (to waste) · fa هدر دادن (to waste) · nb sette over styr (to waste) · ru растранжи́рить (to waste) · cmn 浪費 /浪费 (to waste) · la expatrō (to waste) · pl marnotrawić (to waste) · la lancinō (to waste) · mnc ᠮᠠᠮᡤᡳᠶᠠᠮᠪᡳ (to waste) · nb sløse bort (to waste) · bg прахосам (to waste) · az əritmək (to waste) · es farrear (to waste) · hu elpazarol (to waste) · az satıb-sovmaq (to waste) · fr dilapider (to waste) · ro irosi (to waste) · ru расточа́ть (to waste) · nb forspille (to waste) · es feriar (to waste) · nb skusle bort (to waste) · fi tuhlata (to waste) · ru разбаза́ривать (to waste) · mn үрэх (to waste) · nl verkwisten (to waste) · es malbaratar (to waste) · za saengq (to waste) · pl marnować (to waste) · ca tudar (to waste)