disposable

American  

[dih-spoh-zuh-buhl] / dɪˈspoʊ zə bəl /

adjective

1. designed for or capable of being thrown away after being used or used up.

   disposable plastic spoons; a disposable cigarette lighter.

2. free for use; available.

   Every disposable vehicle was sent.

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noun

• disposables
  plural

1. something disposable after a single use, as a paper cup, plate, or napkin.

disposable British  

/ dɪˈspəʊzəbəl /

adjective

1. designed for disposal after use

   disposable cups

2. available for use if needed

   disposable assets

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noun

1. something, such as a baby's nappy, that is designed for disposal

2. (plural) short for disposable goods

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• disposability
  noun
• disposableness
  noun
• nondisposable
  adjective
• disposably
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• disposables
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of disposable

First recorded in 1645–55; dispose + -able

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Explanation

Something disposable is not meant to last. It's OK to throw it out after you use it. Disposable diapers are a good example of what the word disposable is all about: after the diaper is used, it goes straight into the trash, and you can't use it again. Something disposable is replaceable. If a boss decides an employee is disposable, that means the employee will probably be fired. As you can imagine, people don't like to feel disposable. Lots of people don't like products that are disposable either. Disposing of things just creates more garbage, which is bad for the environment. Usually, things that are recyclable are better.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

disposable disposables

But as in a two-for-one, if you can be sold on the myth that AI is superhuman, it travels along with the idea that regular humans are disposable.

From Salon ● Oct. 12, 2026

Relative poverty means a household has disposable income after housing costs below 60% of the UK median, adjusted for family size and composition.

From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026

His sudden rise had made him "an easily disposable product," he added.

From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026

Babies can go through about 3,000 disposable diapers a year, a basic-need product that has increasingly drawn concern from child health, environmental and consumer advocates.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026

Off to the side, I see teetering columns of red disposable cups.

From "Counting by 7s" by Holly Goldberg Sloan

The government has also previously said banning disposables would "reduce the appeal of vapes to children and keep them out of the hands of vulnerable young people".

From BBC ● May 30, 2025

His philosophy is to use features like color, weight, and shape to communicate containers’ reusability, making it less plausible that people will confuse them for disposables.

From Salon ● May 2, 2024

But if we ban disposables, we also need to get the dodgy ones off the street, otherwise people might just turn to those instead.

From BBC ● Mar. 22, 2024

For all the talk of sustainability and increasing consciousness about climate change, it’s fair to assume that a significant number of Starbucks’ disposables end up in landfills.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 15, 2023

Today's cameras-from the disposables to the fully automated-encapsulate everything we have to know to operate them.

From The Civilization of Illiteracy by Mihai Nadin

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Related Words

• superfluous
• unimportant

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