single-use
adjective
sin·gle-use
ˈsiŋ-gəl-ˈyüs 
variants
or less commonly single use
: intended or designed to be used once and then discarded
single-use plastics
single-use paper products
Surgical masks are single-use face coverings that are designed to act as a barrier to sneezes or other potential exchanges of germs.—
Anandi Barker
Anandi BarkerExamples of single-use in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Refillable glass containers are the most sustainable packaging option for beverage companies, followed by aluminum cans (because they can be easily recycled) and then single-use glass bottles.
—Maria Sole Campinoti, CNN, 2 Mar. 2025
The best thing people can do is reduce their use of single-use materials.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 28 Feb. 2025
Wrapped in Indigenous foliage, the resort embraces sustainability with gray-water harvesting, the elimination of single-use plastics, and the creative repurposing of native limestone from the cliffs below. .
—Laura Begley Bloom, AFAR Media, 27 Feb. 2025
Single-Use Plastic Cutlery As wasteful as single-use plastic cutlery is, Greenstein warns that this item should never be added to compost piles and instead, thrown in the trash (unfortunately).
—Ashlyn Needham, Southern Living, 26 Feb. 2025
Nope, Flint says the rechargeable batteries will have a life cycle comparable to traditional battery technologies, unlike other single-use paper battery designs.
—New Atlas, 25 Feb. 2025
Girlfriend Collective For eco-forward activewear, Girlfriend Collective turns single-use water bottles into comfy basics.
—Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 24 Feb. 2025
The move, while considered largely symbolic, undoes part of a Biden Administration initiative aimed at phasing out the use of single-use plastics, such as plastic straws and water bottles, from all federal operations by 2035.
—Simmone Shah, TIME, 18 Feb. 2025
Biden ordered the federal government last summer to phase out the purchase of single-use plastics, such as straws, from food service operations, events and packaging by 2027 and from all federal operations by 2035.
—Michael Collins, USA TODAY, 17 Feb. 2025
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Maria Sole Campinoti, CNN, 2 Mar. 2025
The best thing people can do is reduce their use of single-use materials.
—Dan Perry, Newsweek, 28 Feb. 2025
Wrapped in Indigenous foliage, the resort embraces sustainability with gray-water harvesting, the elimination of single-use plastics, and the creative repurposing of native limestone from the cliffs below. .
—Laura Begley Bloom, AFAR Media, 27 Feb. 2025
Single-Use Plastic Cutlery As wasteful as single-use plastic cutlery is, Greenstein warns that this item should never be added to compost piles and instead, thrown in the trash (unfortunately).
—Ashlyn Needham, Southern Living, 26 Feb. 2025
Nope, Flint says the rechargeable batteries will have a life cycle comparable to traditional battery technologies, unlike other single-use paper battery designs.
—New Atlas, 25 Feb. 2025
Girlfriend Collective For eco-forward activewear, Girlfriend Collective turns single-use water bottles into comfy basics.
—Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 24 Feb. 2025
The move, while considered largely symbolic, undoes part of a Biden Administration initiative aimed at phasing out the use of single-use plastics, such as plastic straws and water bottles, from all federal operations by 2035.
—Simmone Shah, TIME, 18 Feb. 2025
Biden ordered the federal government last summer to phase out the purchase of single-use plastics, such as straws, from food service operations, events and packaging by 2027 and from all federal operations by 2035.
—Michael Collins, USA TODAY, 17 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Single-use.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/single-use. Accessed 14 Mar. 2025.
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