bootless

[boot-lis]

See more synonyms for bootless on Thesaurus.com

adjective

without result, gain, or advantage; unavailing; useless.

Origin of bootless

before 1000; Middle English bot(e)les, Old English bōtlēas unpardonable. See boot², -less

Related formsboot·less·ly, adverbboot·less·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for bootless

fruitless, futile, idle, ineffectual, unavailing, vain, worthless

Examples from the Web for bootless

Contemporary Examples of bootless

The Democrats sensibly blamed the feckless, bootless Bush administration for the collapse of the markets.
GOP R.I.P.
John Batchelor
April 10, 2009

Historical Examples of bootless

And he recalled his own bootless wickedness and underhand intrigues.
The Fortune of the Rougons
Emile Zola
"But he's gone on a bootless errand, I tell ye," continued Mrs. Garth.
The Shadow of a Crime
Hall Caine
I'll follow him no more with bootless prayers.Merchant of Venice.
An Old Sailor's Yarns
Nathaniel Ames
"'Tis possible—nay, probable—that this is a bootless quest," said I dejectedly.
The O'Ruddy
Stephen Crane
The matter is such a commonplace of history that it is bootless to labour it here.
Ten Thousand Miles with a Dog Sled
Hudson Stuck

British Dictionary definitions for bootless

bootless

adjective

of little or no use; vain; fruitlessa bootless search

Derived Formsbootlessly, adverb

Word Origin for bootless

Old English bōtlēas, from bōt compensation; Old Norse bótalauss

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for bootless

adj.2

late Old English botleas "unpardonable, not to be atoned for, without help or remedy," from boot (n.2) + -less. Meaning "useless, unprofitable" is from early 15c.

adj.1

"lacking boots," late 14c., from boot (n.1) + -less.