futile
Americanadjective
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incapable of producing any result; ineffective; useless; not successful.
Attempting to force-feed the sick horse was futile.
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trifling; frivolous; unimportant.
adjective
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having no effective result; unsuccessful
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pointless; unimportant; trifling
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inane or foolish
don't be so futile!
Synonym Usage
See useless.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of futile
First recorded in 1545–55; from Latin fūtilis, futtilis “easily broken, vain, worthless,” equivalent to fūt- (akin to fundere “to pour, melt”) + -ilis -ile
Explanation
When something fails to deliver a useful result, you can call it futile. Hopefully all the time you're spending studying vocabulary won't turn out to be futile! Futile comes from the Latin futilis, which originally meant "leaky." Although we use futile to talk about more than buckets, the image of a leaky vessel is a good illustration of the adjective. Pouring water into a leaky bucket is futile. Your exercise program will be futile if you don't stop chowing down on chocolate. Futile is fancier than its synonym useless. Other synonyms are fruitless or vain. The i can be either short (FYOO-t'l) or long (FYOO-tile).
Vocabulary lists containing futile
"The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell
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I Am Malala
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The Hunger Games
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A team led by Lawrence Kazak at McGill University's Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Institute has now identified the molecular trigger for this alternative system, known as the futile creatine cycle.
From Science Daily • May 12, 2026
His behavior has alarmed free speech advocates, including the FCC’s lone Democratic appointee Anna Gomez, who noted that early station renewal reviews are exceedingly rare and largely futile.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 28, 2026
But even if Vance had more patience and skill, his efforts would still likely be futile.
From Salon • Apr. 27, 2026
Expectations of any major breakthroughs were low, with Hezbollah's leader Naim Qassem calling for the talks to be scrapped before they even began, describing them as "futile".
From Barron's • Apr. 14, 2026
Giving Enrique clothing will be futile, Carrasco thinks, if he can’t find someone with a car who can get the boy to medical help.
From "Enrique's Journey" by Sonia Nazario
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
