fool's errand
Americannoun
noun
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.
Don’t tell me this is a fool’s errand, that there’s no path, that this doesn’t make any sense.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
Attempting to adjust your gold exposure in response to external factors is most likely a fool’s errand.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 8, 2026
Trying to assign an exact reason to Bitcoin’s collapse can be a fool’s errand, but one risk increasingly cited by short sellers is the rise of quantum computing, S3 said.
From Barron's ● Feb. 10, 2026
And when it comes to healing, understanding the exact contribution to improvement is a fool’s errand.
From Slate ● Jan. 30, 2026
Sometimes they are victims of professional narcissism and write as if the reader were interested in every blind alley, fool’s errand, and wild-goose chase they engaged in while exploring the topic.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
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.
