Ask Difference

Waste vs. Waist — What's the Difference?

Edited by Tayyaba Rehman — By Fiza Rafique — Updated on October 12, 2023
Waste is unused remains, while Waist is the body part above hips.
Waste vs. Waist — What's the Difference?

Difference Between Waste and Waist

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Key Differences

Waste refers to materials that are no longer useful or wanted, often the byproduct of some process or action. On the other hand, Waist is a specific part of the human anatomy, located between the hips and the chest.
Waste can be physical, like garbage, or abstract, such as a waste of time. Waist, however, only pertains to the body, denoting a particular region that can be measured for clothing or described in terms of health and fitness. While we strive to reduce our waste for environmental reasons, many aim to reduce their waist size for aesthetic or health purposes.
The two words, though sounding similar, serve distinct functions in language; one describing disposables and the other, a bodily dimension.

Comparison Chart

Definition

Unused remains
Body part above hips

Part of Speech

Noun (usually)
Noun
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Example Usage

"Waste disposal"
"30-inch waist"

Associated Phrases

"Waste of time"
"Tighten one's waistbelt"

Synonyms

Rubbish, trash
Midriff, middle

Compare with Definitions

Waste

Waste (or wastes) are unwanted or unusable materials. Waste is any substance which is discarded after primary use, or is worthless, defective and of no use.

Waist

The narrow part of a garment, typically near the body's middle.
The dress cinches at the waist.

Waste

Use or expend carelessly, extravagantly, or to no purpose
We can't afford to waste electricity
I don't use the car, so why should I waste precious money on it?

Waist

The middle section or part.
The waist of the bottle is slim.

Waste

(of a person or a part of the body) become progressively weaker and more emaciated
She was visibly wasting away

Waist

The part of the body between ribs and hips.
He wore a belt around his waist.

Waste

Devastate or ruin (a place)
He seized their cattle and wasted their country

Waist

A garment's part covering the waist.
The waist of her shirt was stained.

Waste

(of time) pass away
The years were wasting

Waist

Measurement around the narrowest part of one's torso.
She has a 28-inch waist.

Waste

(of a material, substance, or by-product) eliminated or discarded as no longer useful or required after the completion of a process
Ensure that waste materials are disposed of responsibly
Plants produce oxygen as a waste product

Waist

The waist is the part of the abdomen between the rib cage and hips. On people with slim bodies, the waist is the narrowest part of the torso.

Waste

(of an area of land, typically an urban one) not used, cultivated, or built on
A patch of waste ground

Waist

The part of the human body below the ribs and above the hips, often narrower than the areas above and below
The last time you had a waist was around 1978
He put an arm around her waist

Waste

An act or instance of using or expending something carelessly, extravagantly, or to no purpose
It's a waste of time trying to argue with him
They had learned to avoid waste

Waist

A narrow part in the middle of something, such as a violin or hourglass.

Waste

Unwanted or unusable material, substances, or by-products
Nuclear waste
Hazardous industrial wastes

Waist

A blouse or bodice.

Waste

A large area of barren, typically uninhabited land
The icy wastes of the Antarctic

Waist

The part of the human trunk between the bottom of the rib cage and the pelvis.

Waste

Damage to an estate caused by an act or by neglect, especially by a life tenant.

Waist

The narrow part of the abdomen of an insect.

Waste

To use, consume, spend, or expend thoughtlessly or carelessly.

Waist

The part of a garment that encircles the waist of the body.

Waste

To cause to lose energy, strength, or vigor; exhaust, tire, or enfeeble
Disease wasted his body.

Waist

The upper part of a garment, extending from the shoulders to the waistline, especially the bodice of a dress.

Waste

To fail to take advantage of or use for profit; lose
Waste an opportunity.

Waist

(Archaic) A blouse.

Waste

To destroy completely
The invaders wasted the village.

Waist

The middle section or part of an object, especially when narrower than the rest.

Waste

(Slang) To kill; murder.

Waist

(Nautical) The middle part of the upper deck of a ship between the forecastle and the quarterdeck.

Waste

To lose energy, strength, weight, or vigor; become weak or enfeebled
Wasting away from an illness.

Waist

(anatomy) The part of the body between the pelvis and the stomach.

Waste

To pass without being put to use
Time is wasting.

Waist

A part of a piece of clothing that covers the waist.

Waste

The act or an instance of wasting or the condition of being wasted
A waste of talent.
Gone to waste.

Waist

The narrow connection between the thorax and abdomen in certain insects (e.g., bees, ants and wasps).

Waste

A place, region, or land that is uninhabited or uncultivated; a desert or wilderness.

Waist

The middle portion of the hull of a ship or the fuselage of an aircraft.

Waste

A devastated or destroyed region, town, or building; a ruin.

Waist

(nautical) That part of the upper deck of a ship between the quarterdeck and the forecastle.

Waste

An unusable or unwanted substance or material, such as a waste product
Industrial wastes.

Waist

(obsolete) The middle part of anything.

Waste

Something, such as steam, that escapes without being used.

Waist

That part of the human body which is immediately below the ribs or thorax; the small part of the body between the thorax and hips.
I am in the waist two yards about.

Waste

Garbage; trash.

Waist

Hence, the middle part of other bodies; especially (Naut.), that part of a vessel's deck, bulwarks, etc., which is between the quarter-deck and the forecastle; the middle part of the ship.

Waste

The undigested residue of food eliminated from the body; excrement.

Waist

A garment, or part of a garment, which covers the body from the neck or shoulders to the waist line.

Waste

Regarded or discarded as worthless or useless
Waste trimmings.

Waist

A girdle or belt for the waist.

Waste

Used as a conveyance or container for refuse
A waste bin.

Waist

The narrowing of the body between the ribs and hips

Waste

Excreted from the body
Waste matter.

Waist

The narrow part of the shoe connecting the heel and the wide part of the sole

Waste

Of material, useless by-products, or damaged, unsaleable products; garbage; rubbish.

Waste

Or urine.
The cage was littered with animal waste.

Waste

A wasteland; an uninhabited desolate region; a wilderness or desert.

Waste

A place that has been laid waste or destroyed.

Waste

A large tract of uncultivated land.

Waste

(historical) The part of the land of a manor (of whatever size) not used for cultivation or grazing, nowadays treated as common land.

Waste

A vast expanse of water.

Waste

A disused mine or part of one.

Waste

The action or progress of wasting; extravagant consumption or ineffectual use.
That was a waste of time!
Her life seemed a waste.

Waste

Large abundance of something, specifically without it being used.

Waste

Gradual loss or decay.

Waste

A decaying of the body by disease; atrophy; wasting away.

Waste

(rare) destruction or devastation caused by war or natural disasters; see "to lay waste".

Waste

(legal) A cause of action which may be brought by the owner of a future interest in property against the current owner of that property to prevent the current owner from degrading the value or character of the property, either intentionally or through neglect.

Waste

(geology) Material derived by mechanical and chemical erosion from the land, carried by streams to the sea.

Waste

Useless and contemptible.

Waste

Uncultivated, uninhabited.

Waste

Barren; desert.

Waste

Rejected as being defective; eliminated as being worthless; produced in excess.

Waste

Superfluous; needless.

Waste

Dismal; gloomy; cheerless.

Waste

Unfortunate; disappointing. en

Waste

(transitive) To devastate; to destroy.

Waste

(transitive) To squander (money or resources) uselessly; to spend (time) idly.
We wasted millions of dollars and several years on that project.

Waste

To kill; to murder.

Waste

(transitive) To wear away by degrees; to impair gradually; to deteriorate; to diminish by constant loss; to use up; to consume; to spend; to wear out.

Waste

(intransitive) To gradually lose weight, weaken, become frail.

Waste

(intransitive) To be diminished; to lose bulk, substance, strength, value etc. gradually.

Waste

(legal) To damage, impair, or injure (an estate, etc.) voluntarily, or by allowing the buildings, fences, etc., to fall into decay.

Waste

Desolate; devastated; stripped; bare; hence, dreary; dismal; gloomy; cheerless.
The dismal situation waste and wild.
His heart became appalled as he gazed forward into the waste darkness of futurity.

Waste

Lying unused; unproductive; worthless; valueless; refuse; rejected; as, waste land; waste paper.
But his waste words returned to him in vain.
Not a waste or needless sound,Till we come to holier ground.
Ill day which made this beauty waste.

Waste

Lost for want of occupiers or use; superfluous.
And strangled with her waste fertility.

Waste

To bring to ruin; to devastate; to desolate; to destroy.
Thou barren ground, whom winter's wrath hath wasted,Art made a mirror to behold my plight.
The TiberInsults our walls, and wastes our fruitful grounds.

Waste

To wear away by degrees; to impair gradually; to diminish by constant loss; to use up; to consume; to spend; to wear out.
Until your carcasses be wasted in the wilderness.
O, were I ableTo waste it all myself, and leave ye none!
Here condemnedTo waste eternal days in woe and pain.
Wasted by such a course of life, the infirmities of age daily grew on him.

Waste

To spend unnecessarily or carelessly; to employ prodigally; to expend without valuable result; to apply to useless purposes; to lavish vainly; to squander; to cause to be lost; to destroy by scattering or injury.
The younger son gathered all together, and . . . wasted his substance with riotous living.
Full many a flower is born to blush unseen,And waste its sweetness on the desert air.

Waste

To damage, impair, or injure, as an estate, voluntarily, or by suffering the buildings, fences, etc., to go to decay.

Waste

To be diminished; to lose bulk, substance, strength, value, or the like, gradually; to be consumed; to dwindle; to grow less; - commonly used with away.
The time wasteth night and day.
The barrel of meal shall not waste.
But man dieth, and wasteth away.

Waste

To procure or sustain a reduction of flesh; - said of a jockey in preparation for a race, etc.

Waste

The act of wasting, or the state of being wasted; a squandering; needless destruction; useless consumption or expenditure; devastation; loss without equivalent gain; gradual loss or decrease, by use, wear, or decay; as, a waste of property, time, labor, words, etc.
For all this waste of wealth loss of blood.
He will never . . . in the way of waste, attempt us again.
Little wastes in great establishments, constantly occurring, may defeat the energies of a mighty capital.

Waste

That which is wasted or desolate; a devastated, uncultivated, or wild country; a deserted region; an unoccupied or unemployed space; a dreary void; a desert; a wilderness.
All the leafy nation sinks at last,And Vulcan rides in triumph o'er the waste.
The gloomy waste of waters which bears his name is his tomb and his monument.

Waste

That which is of no value; worthless remnants; refuse. Specifically: Remnants of cops, or other refuse resulting from the working of cotton, wool, hemp, and the like, used for wiping machinery, absorbing oil in the axle boxes of railway cars, etc.

Waste

Spoil, destruction, or injury, done to houses, woods, fences, lands, etc., by a tenant for life or for years, to the prejudice of the heir, or of him in reversion or remainder.

Waste

Old or abandoned workings, whether left as vacant space or filled with refuse.

Waste

Material derived by mechanical and chemical erosion from the land, carried by streams to the sea.

Waste

Any materials unused and rejected as worthless or unwanted;
They collect the waste once a week
Much of the waste material is carried off in the sewers

Waste

Useless or profitless activity; using or expending or consuming thoughtlessly or carelessly;
If the effort brings no compensating gain it is a waste
Mindless dissipation of natural resources

Waste

The trait of wasting resources;
A life characterized by thriftlessness and waste
The wastefulness of missed opportunities

Waste

An uninhabited wilderness that is worthless for cultivation;
The barrens of central Africa
The trackless wastes of the desert

Waste

(law) reduction in the value of an estate caused by act or neglect

Waste

Spend thoughtlessly; throw away;
He wasted his inheritance on his insincere friends
You squandered the opportunity to get and advanced degree

Waste

Use inefficiently or inappropriately;
Waste heat
Waste a joke on an unappreciative audience

Waste

Get rid of;
We waste the dirty water by channeling it into the sewer

Waste

Run off as waste;
The water wastes back into the ocean

Waste

Get rid of (someone who may be a threat) by killing;
The mafia liquidated the informer
The double agent was neutralized

Waste

Spend extravagantly;
Waste not, want not

Waste

Lose vigor, health, or flesh, as through grief;
After her husband died, she just pined away

Waste

Cause to grow thin or weak;
The treatment emaciated him

Waste

Devastate or ravage;
The enemy lay waste to the countryside after the invasion

Waste

Waste away;
Political prisoners are wasting away in many prisons all over the world

Waste

Disposed of as useless;
Waste paper

Waste

Located in a dismal or remote area; desolate;
A desert island
A godforsaken wilderness crossroads
A wild stretch of land
Waste places

Waste

Unused or discarded material.
Companies should recycle their waste.

Waste

Excessive use or misuse.
It's a waste of money to buy that car.

Waste

A desolate or unproductive region.
The barren waste stretched for miles.

Waste

To consume or use without purpose.
Don't waste your time on trivial matters.

Waste

To deteriorate or wear away.
The building has wasted away over the years.

Common Curiosities

Is "waistline" related to "Waist"?

Yes, waistline refers to the circumference of one's waist or the part of a garment covering the waist.

What body part is the Waist?

Waist is the part of the body between the ribs and the hips.

Can Waste be a verb?

Yes, "to waste" means to use or expend carelessly.

How is the Waist measured?

Typically, with a measuring tape around the narrowest part of the torso.

Is there an environmental concern regarding Waste?

Yes, improper waste disposal can harm the environment.

What does Waste refer to?

Waste refers to materials that are no longer useful or wanted, often resulting from some process or action.

Can Waste be used in a figurative sense?

Yes, such as in the phrase "a waste of time."

Are the words Waste and Waist homophones?

Yes, they sound alike but have different meanings.

Can you name a product related to Waist?

A waist belt or corset.

What does "lay waste to" mean?

It means to destroy or devastate something.

What are some synonyms for Waste?

Rubbish, trash, and refuse are some synonyms.

Can you name a product related to Waste?

A waste bin or garbage bag.

Is the Waist always a specific size?

No, it can vary among individuals and can change over time.

How are Waste and Waist used differently in sentences?

"Waste" often relates to disposal or inefficiency, while "Waist" relates to the body or middle section of objects.

What can "reduce your waist" mean?

It often refers to losing belly fat or slimming down.

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Author Spotlight

Written by
Fiza Rafique
Fiza Rafique is a skilled content writer at AskDifference.com, where she meticulously refines and enhances written pieces. Drawing from her vast editorial expertise, Fiza ensures clarity, accuracy, and precision in every article. Passionate about language, she continually seeks to elevate the quality of content for readers worldwide.
Tayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.

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