producing no result or effect; "a futile effort"; "the therapy was ineffectual"; "an otiose undertaking"; "an unavailing attempt"
Used in a Sentence
futile
How to use futile in a sentence. Example sentences and definitions for futile.
Editorial note
It's like dating-it's futile to complain about the rules.
Examples10
Definitions2
Parts of speech1
Quick take
producing no result or effect; "a futile effort"; "the therapy was ineffectual"; "an otiose undertaking"; "an unavailing attempt"
Meaning at a glance
The clearest senses and uses of futile gathered in one view.
unproductive of success; "a fruitless search"; "futile years after her artistic peak"; "a sleeveless errand"; "a vain attempt"
Definitions
Core meanings and parts of speech for futile.
adjective
producing no result or effect; "a futile effort"; "the therapy was ineffectual"; "an otiose undertaking"; "an unavailing attempt"
See also: ineffectual, otiose, unavailing
adjective
unproductive of success; "a fruitless search"; "futile years after her artistic peak"; "a sleeveless errand"; "a vain attempt"
See also: bootless, fruitless, sleeveless, vain
Example sentences
It's like dating-it's futile to complain about the rules.
If you really want to argue that the web is a surrogate for Gopher, this conversation is futile.
That is where one should look at for disruption, everything else is futile, because it's as lean as possible.
This is probably as futile and misguided as Stallman's effort to get everyone to say "GNU/Linux".
I'm sure WW3 would be completely futile, we'll still have it anyway, but I don't think it'll be this decade and USA vs China or whatever.
Her experience with the medical system was humiliating, futile, and expensive.
Figure out and optimize for the target demographics that convert the bestIn the age of analytics, it is futile to define target audiences before statistics are available.
If there are no restrictions on its usage, this hope becomes futile -- the gatekeepers of privately owned datasets will reap the benefits of contributions to OSM without offering anything in return.
That we're making a generalization out of humanity's life experiences is futile in itself, but alas, the application of said generalization here is far more interesting to me.
Another allusion to the USA maybe WRT having Japan's back?Note if you have the USA play all the parts of WWI then its not much of a WWI anymore, is it?In groups men are by nature irrational not rational, there is nothing inconsistent with the old quote about WWI being impossible because its obviously futile, yet they had a war anyway.
Frequently asked questions
Short answers drawn from the clearest meanings and examples for this word.
How do you use futile in a sentence?
It's like dating-it's futile to complain about the rules.
What does futile mean?
producing no result or effect; "a futile effort"; "the therapy was ineffectual"; "an otiose undertaking"; "an unavailing attempt"
What part of speech is futile?
futile is commonly used as adjective.