spendthrift

American  

[spend-thrift] / ˈspɛndˌθrɪft /

noun

1. a person who spends possessions or money extravagantly or wastefully; prodigal.

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adjective

1. wastefully extravagant; prodigal.

   Synonyms:

   profligate, improvident, wasteful

spendthrift British  

/ ˈspɛndˌθrɪft /

noun

1. a person who spends money in an extravagant manner

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adjective

1. (usually prenominal) of or like a spendthrift

   spendthrift economies

Etymology

Origin of spendthrift

First recorded in 1595–1605; spend + thrift

Example Sentences

A spendthrift trust “prevents your child from selling, borrowing against, or misusing their inheritance,” Cote says.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 18, 2026

No one today any longer wishes to hear jokes about nagging mothers-in-law, spendthrift wives or old jalopies, and the men and women who once told them to hardy plaudits are now forgotten.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 14, 2025

Chantel Chapman, a 40-year-old entrepreneur in Richmond, British Columbia, was once a spendthrift in this way.

From New York Times • Jul. 5, 2023

The last was in 1821, for the rotund, spendthrift George IV. One of the reasons it was the last?

From Los Angeles Times • May 4, 2023

That she's a spendthrift and loves to gamble and entertain with extravagant parties.

From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton