profligate
Meaning
spending money or using resources in a reckless, extravagant, or wasteful way
behaving in a wildly immoral or debauched way
a person who spends money or uses resources in a reckless, wasteful way
Structure
Usage
he was known for his profligate spending on luxury cars and parties.
the profligate use of natural resources cannot be sustained.
the novel's antagonist is a charming but ultimately destructive profligate.
Etymology
the word profligate originates from the latin verb 'profligare', meaning "to strike down, ruin". this verb is itself a compound of 'pro-' ("forward") and 'fligere' ("to strike"). the literal sense was to knock something down completely. in latin, the past participle 'profligatus' came to describe someone morally overthrown or ruined, hence "dissolute". this concrete image of being struck down evolved into the english abstract meanings of recklessly extravagant and morally degenerate, capturing the idea of a person who has "fallen" from virtue or financial prudence.
Analysis
pro (latin prefix, meaning "forward, forth"); flig (from latin verb 'fligere', meaning "to strike down"); ate (latin-derived suffix forming adjectives and nouns)