Translation guide
Profligacy refers to reckless wastefulness, especially with money, or extreme moral looseness. In Japanese, the concept is expressed through words for extravagance, waste, and dissipation.
Describing spending money in a wildly extravagant, wasteful way
General term for waste or squandering, often used for money, time, or resources. Can be used in neutral or negative contexts.
Describing a lifestyle of excessive indulgence in pleasure, often with a negative moral judgment
浪費 is a broader term for waste, including time and resources, while 散財 specifically refers to wasting money. 散財 often implies spending on frivolous things.
There is no single Japanese word that covers both financial waste and moral dissipation exactly like 'profligacy'. Choose the term based on the specific nuance you need.
彼は給料を全部浪費してしまった。
He squandered his entire salary.
Spending money recklessly or lavishly, often on unnecessary things. Implies a lack of restraint.
She is squandering money on luxury brands.
Squandering a fortune or large sum of money, often to the point of ruin. More literary and dramatic.
He squandered his inheritance.
Describes someone who spends money roughly or wastefully. A common colloquial phrase.
He's a spendthrift, so he's always in debt.
Dissipation, debauchery, or profligacy in a moral sense. Often used for a lifestyle of drinking, gambling, and womanizing.
In his youth, he indulged in every kind of dissipation.
Self-indulgent, dissolute, or slovenly. Implies a lack of self-discipline and moral decay.
If you lead a dissolute life, you'll ruin your health.
Decadence, corruption, or degeneracy. Often used in social or cultural contexts, not just personal behavior.
The novel depicts the decadence of aristocratic society.