English word waste comes from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ug-, Proto-Germanic *wōstaz, Proto-Germanic - þuz, Frankish *wostin, Frankish *wōsti, Frankish *wostinna, and later Proto-Germanic *wahsijaną (To grow.)
| Dictionary entry | Language | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| *h₂ug- | Proto-Indo-European (ine) | |
| *wōstaz | Proto-Germanic (gem-pro) | |
| - þuz | Proto-Germanic (gem-pro) | |
| *wostin | Frankish (frk) | |
| *wōsti | Frankish (frk) | |
| *wostinna | Frankish (frk) | |
| *wahsijaną | Proto-Germanic (gem-pro) | To grow. |
| *wuosti | Frankish (frk) | |
| *wahstuz | Proto-Germanic (gem-pro) | Size, growth. |
| waste | Old French (842-ca. 1400) (fro) | |
| *wǣxt | Old English (ca. 450-1100) (ang) | |
| wast | Old Northern French (fro-nor) | |
| wast | Middle English (1100-1500) (enm) | |
| waste | English (en) | (now, rare) Uncultivated, uninhabited.. Barren; desert.. Dismal; gloomy; cheerless.. Rejected as being defective; eliminated as being worthless; produced in excess.. Superfluous; needless.. Unfortunate; disappointing. (Can we add an example for this sense?). |