profligate

English

WOTD – 13 October 2007    

Etymology

From Latin prōflīgātus (“wretched, abandoned”), participle of prōflīgō (“strike down, cast down”), from pro (“forward”) + fligere (“to strike, dash”)

Pronunciation

• (adjective, noun, RP) IPA: /ˈprɒflɪɡət/
• (adjective, noun, US) enPR: prŏʹflĭgət, IPA: /ˈprɑːflɪɡət/
• (adjective, noun)

  Audio (US)

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• (verb, RP) IPA: /ˈprɒflɪɡeɪt/
• (verb, US) enPR: prŏʹflĭgāt, IPA: /ˈprɑːflɪɡeɪt/
• (verb)

  Audio (US)

  (file)

Adjective

profligate (comparative more profligate, superlative most profligate)

1. (obsolete) Overthrown, ruined.
2. Inclined to waste resources or behave extravagantly.
3. Immoral; abandoned to vice.

Synonyms

• (inclined to waste resources or behave extravagantly): extravagant, wasteful, prodigal
• (immoral, abandoned to vice): immoral, licentious
• See also Wikisaurus:prodigal

Derived terms

• profligateness

Translations

inclined to waste resources or behave extravagantly

• Finnish: tuhlaavainen (fi)
• Hungarian: tékozló (hu)

• Russian: неэкономный (ru) (neekonomnyj), расточительный (ru) (rastočitelʹnyj)

immoral; abandoned to vice

• Armenian: անառակ (hy) (anaṙak)
• Finnish: paheellinen (fi)

• Hungarian: erkölcstelen (hu), feslett (hu)
• Russian: распутный (ru) (rasputnyj), развратный (ru) (razvratnyj)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• Jèrriais: putachi

Noun

profligate (plural profligates)

1. An abandoned person; one openly and shamelessly vicious; a dissolute person.
2. An overly wasteful or extravagant individual.

Synonyms

• (overly wasteful or extravagant individual): wastrel
• See also Wikisaurus:spendthrift and Wikisaurus:prodigal

Translations

abandoned person

• Russian: развратник (ru) (razvratnik) m, распутник (ru) (rasputnik) m

overly wasteful or extravagant individual

• Russian: расточитель (ru) (rastočitelʹ) m, транжир (ru) (tranžir) m, мот (ru) (mot) m

Verb

profligate (third-person singular simple present profligates, present participle profligating, simple past and past participle profligated)

1. (obsolete) To drive away; to overcome.
   • 1840, Alexander Walker, Woman Physiologically Considered as to Mind, Morals, Marriage, Matrimonial Slavery, Infidelity and Divorce, page 157:

     Such a stipulation would remove one powerful temptation to profligate pennyless seducers, of whom there are too many prowling in the higher circles ;

Synonyms

• (to drive away; to overcome): overcome

Related terms

• profligacy
• profligately
• profligateness
• profligation

External links

• profligate in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• profligate in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

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Latin

Adjective

prōflīgāte

1. vocative masculine singular of prōflīgātus