waster
/ˈweɪstə/noun
waster is spelled W-A-S-T-E-R: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 64,400th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, waster means “Someone or something that wastes; someone who squanders or spends extravagantly” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of waster is wasters.
How many letters and syllables are in waster?
| Letters | 6: W-A-S-T-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 5 million words; the 64,400th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is waster?
Waster appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 64,400th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce waster?
- UK /ˈweɪstə/
Waster has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-I_learned_some_phrases-waster.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with waster?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as waster (/eɪstə/).
Spelled with the same letters in another order: waters.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of waster
- wasters plural
- wastor
- wastour
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does waster mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Someone or something that wastes; someone who squanders or spends extravagantly.
- 2
An imperfection in the wick of a candle, causing it to waste.
- 3
obsoleteA destroyer or plunderer.
- 4
An item that is spoiled during its manufacture.
- 5
derogatoryslangAn idle, worthless person; a loser.
- 6
obsoleteA kind of cudgel; also, a blunt-edged sword used as a foil.
- 7
ScotlandobsoleteA leister; a spear for catching fish.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Waster in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense one that wastes:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | gaspilleur, gaspilleuse |
| German | Verschwender, Verschwenderin |
| Spanish | malgastador |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does waster come from?
From Middle English wastere, waister, wastar, wastour, equivalent to waste + -er. Compare Anglo-Norman wastur, Old French gastëor.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).