non-wasting
|non-wast-ing|
🇺🇸
/nɑnˈweɪstɪŋ/
🇬🇧
/nɒnˈweɪstɪŋ/
not causing waste
Etymology
'non-wasting' is formed from the prefix 'non-' (from Latin 'non', meaning 'not') combined with 'wasting', the present participle of 'waste'.
'waste' comes from Old North French/Old French 'wast(e)', and from Frankish/Germanic roots (Proto-Germanic *wastan) meaning 'to squander, to lay waste'; it entered Middle English as 'wasten' and later developed into the modern verb 'waste'. The compound 'non-' + 'wasting' is a modern English formation using the negative prefix with the participle.
Originally, 'waste' meant 'to lay waste, devastate' and later acquired senses of 'to squander or use carelessly'; 'non-wasting' has the current meaning 'not causing waste' or 'preventing waste'.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Adjective 1
not causing or involving waste; conserving resources or preventing unnecessary loss.
The factory implemented a non-wasting production method that reduced material loss by 30%.
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Adjective 2
not causing physical wasting or deterioration (used in medical or biological contexts to indicate absence of wasting).
They observed a non-wasting condition in patients receiving the new therapy.
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Last updated: 2025/11/05 20:56