adjective / noun
profligate
Given to unrestrained, immoral behavior.
His profligate lifestyle strains his marriage and shocks his friends.
Etymology
The Latin source describes something brought down or ruined. Applied to character, it developed the idea of moral ruin and unrestrained misconduct.
More examples
- His drunken affairs expose the profligate behavior he tries to hide.
- The novel's hero is a profligate who betrays every lover.
- The preacher condemns the profligate lives of the city's elite.
Forms
profligate · profligates
profligacy noun — Unrestrained indulgence in immoral behavior.