What does "wishcycling" mean?

The disposal of consumer waste in a recycling bin in the hope of it being recycled, when it cannot or is unlikely to be recycled.

What is a synonym for "wishcycling"?

Common synonyms include: aspirational recycling, wishful recycling.

noun, verb

noun, verb ·Rare ·Advanced level

Noun

1
The disposal of consumer waste in a recycling bin in the hope of it being recycled, when it cannot or is unlikely to be recycled. neologism, uncountable
"Some new innovative packaging can’t be recycled, but nonetheless ends up in the single-sort bin through what Keegan calls “wish cycling.”"

Verb

1
present participle and gerund of wishcycle form-of, gerund, participle, present

"Some new innovative packaging can’t be recycled, but nonetheless ends up in the single-sort bin through what Keegan calls “wish cycling.”"

Blend of wish + recycling, said to have been coined by Bill Keegan, president of a recycling company.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.