Dictionary.com

QUIZZES

THIS PSAT VOCABULARY QUIZ IS PERFECT PRACTICE FOR THE REAL TEST

In our third teacher-created PSAT practice test there are new and unique vocabulary terms you may have never heard of! Can you guess what they mean?
Question 1 of 10
seclusion
a false belief or opinion.
the matter that settles to the bottom of a liquid.
the state of being isolated, kept apart, or withdrawn into solitude.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of wanton

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English wantowen, literally, “undisciplined, ill-reared,” Old English wan- “not” + togen, past participle of tēon “to discipline, rear,” cognate with German ziehen, Latin dūcere “to lead”; akin to tow1

OTHER WORDS FROM wanton

wan·ton·ly, adverbwan·ton·ness, nounun·wan·ton, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH wanton

wanton , won ton
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Words related to wanton

outrageous, promiscuous, lewd, shameless, gratuitous, unjust, needless, senseless, vicious, unjustified, arbitrary, willful, unjustifiable, unprovoked, extravagant, capricious, reckless, wasteful, libertine, abandoned

Example sentences from the Web for wanton

British Dictionary definitions for wanton

wanton
/ (ˈwɒntən) /

adjective

noun

a licentious person, esp a woman
a playful or capricious person

verb

(intr) to behave in a wanton manner
(tr) to squander or waste

Derived forms of wanton

wantonly, adverbwantonness, noun

Word Origin for wanton

C13 wantowen (in the obsolete sense: unmanageable, unruly): from wan- (prefix equivalent to un- 1; related to Old English wanian to wane) + -towen, from Old English togen brought up, from tēon to bring up
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012