First Known Use: 15th century
Dictionary
1prodigal
adjective prod·i·gal \ˈprä-di-gəl\
: carelessly and foolishly spending money, time, etc.
Full Definition of PRODIGAL
1
: characterized by profuse or wasteful expenditure : lavish <a prodigal feast> <prodigal outlays for her clothes>
2
: recklessly spendthrift <the prodigal prince>
3
: yielding abundantly : luxuriant —often used with of <nature has been so prodigal of her bounty — H. T. Buckle>
— prod·i·gal·i·ty \ˌprä-də-ˈga-lə-tē\ noun
— prod·i·gal·ly \ˈprä-di-g(ə-)lē\ adverb
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Examples of PRODIGAL
- We sipped our beers and wondered at one another, at what was left of all that and of those prodigal days. —Michael Chabon, A Model World and Other Stories, 1991
- Mr. Bulstrode replied without haste, but also without hesitation. “I am grieved, though, I confess, not surprised by this information, Mr. Lydgate. For my own part, I regretted your alliance with my brother-in-law's family, which has always been of prodigal habits, and which has already been much indebted to me for sustainment in its present position…” —George Eliot, Middlemarch, 1872
- The prodigal use of antibiotics in animals has the same consequence as their overprescription for human beings. —Cullen Murphy, New York Times Book Review, 10 June l984
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Origin of PRODIGAL
Related to PRODIGAL
- Synonyms
- extravagant, high-rolling, profligate, spendthrift, squandering, thriftless, unthrifty, wasteful
- Antonyms
- conserving, economical, economizing, frugal, penny-pinching, scrimping, skimping, thrifty
Synonym Discussion of PRODIGAL
profuse, lavish, prodigal, luxuriant, lush, exuberant mean giving or given out in great abundance. profuse implies pouring forth without restraint <profuse apologies>. lavish suggests an unstinted or unmeasured profusion <a lavish party>. prodigal implies reckless or wasteful lavishness threatening to lead to early exhaustion of resources <prodigal spending>. luxuriant suggests a rich and splendid abundance <a luxuriant beard>. lush suggests rich, soft luxuriance <a lush green lawn>. exuberant implies marked vitality or vigor in what produces abundantly <an exuberant imagination>.
2prodigal
noun prod·i·gal \ˈprä-di-gəl\
Definition of PRODIGAL
1
: one who spends or gives lavishly and foolishly
2
: one who has returned after an absence
Examples of PRODIGAL
- Such a trustee had been first instituted by the praetor, to save a family from the blind havoc of a prodigal or madman… —Edward Gibbon, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, 1788
Origin of PRODIGAL
(see 1prodigal)
First Known Use: 1561
Related to PRODIGAL
- Synonyms
- fritterer, high roller, profligate, spender, spendthrift, squanderer, waster, wastrel
- Antonyms
- economizer, penny-pincher
PRODIGALITY Defined for Kids
1prodigal
adjective prod·i·gal \ˈprä-di-gəl\
Definition of PRODIGAL for Kids
: carelessly wasteful <a prodigal spender>
2prodigal
noun
Definition of PRODIGAL for Kids
: somebody who wastes money carelessly
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