squander (v.)

1580s (squandering, Nashe), "to spend recklessly or prodigiously, use without judgment or economy," of unknown origin; Shakespeare used it in "Merchant of Venice" (1593) with a sense of "to be scattered over a wide area." Related: Squandered; squanderer.

Squander-bug, a British symbol of reckless extravagance and waste during war-time shortages, represented as a devilish insect, was introduced 1943. In the U.S., Rep. Louis Ludlow (D.-Indiana) coined squanderlust (1935) for the tendency of government bureaucracies to spend much money. Earlier was squandermania (1920).