wasted
Americanadjective
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done to no avail; useless.
wasted efforts.
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physically or psychologically exhausted; debilitated.
to be wasted by a long illness.
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Slang. overcome by the influence of alcohol or drugs.
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Archaic. (of time) gone by.
adjective
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not exploited or taken advantage of
a wasted opportunity
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useless or unprofitable
wasted effort
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physically enfeebled and emaciated
a thin wasted figure
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slang showing signs of habitual drug abuse
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of wasted
late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at waste, -ed 2
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But posties speaking to us anonymously say parcels are still being prioritised, letters left behind, and time wasted in sorting and dividing mail into first and second class.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
Pages had wasted the Dodgers’ second challenge on a clear strike moments earlier.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
He wasted months of 2026 on that particular rock.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026
The paper calls it a "bid to stop young lives being wasted".
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
So let’s just say I’m not proud of how I acted, and I’m sure I wasted some time, but I really couldn’t think what else to do.
From "Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer" by Kelly Jones
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
