1
be profligate
表示主语具有放荡或浪费的性格。
He was profligate in his youth.
他年轻时放荡不羁。
挥霍的；浪费的
先理解核心含义，再看它在真实句子里的用法。
挥霍的；浪费的
Wasteful or extravagant, especially in spending money or using resources
He was profligate in his youth.
他年轻时放荡不羁。
倾向于浪费资源或奢侈
Inclined to waste resources or behave extravagantly.
不道德的；沉溺于恶习的
Immoral; abandoned to vice.
鲁莽浪费的
recklessly wasteful
His profligate spending habits left him in debt.
他挥霍无度的消费习惯使他负债累累。
The profligate lifestyle of the celebrity shocked the public.
那位名人放荡的生活方式令公众震惊。
She criticized the profligate use of resources in the project.
她批评该项目中资源的浪费使用。
表示主语具有放荡或浪费的性格。
He was profligate in his youth.
他年轻时放荡不羁。
修饰名词，强调该名词所涉行为的无节制。
The profligate spending led to bankruptcy.
挥霍无度的开支导致了破产。
后接方面或行为，说明在哪方面无节制。
She was profligate in her use of resources.
她在资源使用上挥霍无度。
Not this
He is a profligate.
Use this
He is a profligate man.
profligate 作为形容词使用时，不能加不定冠词 a 当作名词，应修饰名词或作表语。
Not this
She is profligate in spending money.
Use this
She is profligate with money.
profligate 表示‘浪费的’时，常用介词 with 搭配，如 be profligate with money；in spending 不自然。
Focus on the distinctions below. Other candidates are kept compact until a reliable usage note is available.
挥霍无度的开支
The report criticized the government's profligate spending on luxury items.
报告批评了政府在奢侈品上的挥霍无度的开支。
放荡挥霍的生活方式
After years of a profligate lifestyle, he was left with almost no savings.
经过多年放荡挥霍的生活，他几乎没剩下任何积蓄。
极度的浪费；挥霍糟蹋
The project was abandoned after profligate waste of public funds.
该项目在极度浪费公共资金后被放弃了。
奢侈挥霍的使用；滥用
Profligate use of natural resources has accelerated environmental damage.
对自然资源的挥霍使用加速了环境破坏。
放荡堕落的行为；挥霍无度的行为
His profligate behavior finally estranged him from his family.
他的放荡堕落的行为最终让他与家人疏远了。
挥金如土的人；大手大脚花钱的人
She has always been a profligate spender, buying things she never uses.
她一向挥金如土，买许多从来用不上的东西。
Use profligate naturally, then get feedback on meaning, tone, grammar, and phrasing.
Revisit a common error or keep this word in your review list.
记 profligate：pro-（向前）+ flig（像 flight 飞）+ ate，想象钞票向前飞走，挥霍浪费；也指人放纵堕落。
语域：formal 常见场景：formal essays、news commentary、literary description profligate 比较正式，多用于书面语，常形容挥霍浪费或道德堕落。日常口语中较少见，可用 wasteful 或 reckless 等词替代。
以上单词的末尾都与 profligate 的 /ɡeɪt/ 音节一致。注意拼写陷阱：delegate 作名词时读作 /ˈdɛlɪɡət/，legate 读作 /ˈlɛɡɪt/，并非以 /ɡeɪt/ 结尾。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.