unthrifty

A farmer examines an unthrifty plant in his field.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Not thrifty; wasteful in the management of resources: "unthrifty" describes a person or behavior that is not economical or careful with money, time, or other resources.
   • Not thriving or growing well (of plants or crops): In agricultural or horticultural contexts, "unthrifty" refers to plants that grow poorly, are weak, or yield little benefit.

Usage Examples

• Wasteful behavior:

  • His unthrifty spending habits left him in debt. (He spent money carelessly and without saving.)
  • The unthrifty use of water during the drought was criticized. (Using water without conservation.)

• Poor plant growth:

  • The unthrifty seedlings failed to produce any fruit. (The young plants grew weakly and were not productive.)
  • Farmers avoided planting in that unthrifty soil. (The soil was not fertile and caused poor growth.)

Advanced Usage

• "unthrifty with one's resources": a formal way to describe someone who mismanages what they have.

  • He was unthrifty with his time, wasting hours on trivial tasks. (He did not use his time efficiently.)

• "unthrifty crop": a crop that yields low returns or grows poorly.

  • The unthrifty crop of wheat was a disappointment to the farmer. (The wheat grew poorly and produced little grain.)

Variants and Related Words

• Unthriftiness (noun): the quality or state of being unthrifty.

  • Her unthriftiness led to financial ruin. (Her wasteful nature caused her to lose money.)

• Thrifty (adj, antonym): careful with money or resources; economical.

  • She is thrifty and saves a portion of her income each month. (She manages money wisely.)

Synonyms

• Wasteful: using more than necessary; extravagant.
• Prodigal: spending money or resources freely and recklessly.
• Extravagant: lacking restraint in spending; excessive.
• Unproductive (for plants): not yielding good results or growth.

Antonyms

• Thrifty: economical and careful with resources.
• Frugal: sparing or economical with regard to money or food.
• Productive (for plants): yielding good results or abundant growth.

Related Idioms

• "Burn through money": to spend money quickly and wastefully.

  • He burned through his inheritance in a year. (He wasted all his money.)

• "Money burns a hole in one's pocket": to be eager to spend money as soon as one gets it.

  • She can't save; money burns a hole in her pocket. (She spends money immediately.)

Phrasal Verbs

• "Use up": to consume all of something, often wastefully.
  • He used up all the supplies without thinking of future needs. (He depleted resources carelessly.)