fruitless
Americanadjective
-
useless; unproductive; without results or success.
a fruitless search for the missing treasure.
- Synonyms:
- vain, unavailing, futile
- Antonyms:
- profitable, useful
-
bearing no fruit; barren.
- Synonyms:
- sterile
- Antonyms:
- fertile
adjective
-
yielding nothing or nothing of value; unproductive; ineffectual
-
without fruit
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of fruitless
Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; see origin at fruit, -less
Explanation
Fruitless things are futile or pointless. If your search for your missing car keys is fruitless, you don't find them no matter how hard you look. You can call a fruitless search a wild goose chase — despite your efforts, you're unsuccessful. If you spend a fruitless afternoon applying for jobs, you end up without a single offer, and if your attempt to get your dog and cat to be pals is fruitless, they end up hating each other just as much as they ever did. The adjective fruitless comes from the sense of "unproductive" or "without profit," like a fruit tree that doesn't grow any fruit.
Vocabulary lists containing fruitless
Power Suffix: -less
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"Rogue Wave" by Theodore Taylor
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Twelfth Night
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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.
I spent fruitless hours testing my employer’s patience, neglecting my more immediate work while dredging up zero-retweet Twitter posts from the early 2010s.
From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026
"I've been asking around since Friday, but they're nowhere to be found," a woman named Mabel told AFP in Barcelona after another fruitless search.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
But collateral damage can add up for the unlikely people stuck in lengthy, fruitless job searches, analysts say.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
Though seeking only feedback, not bids, and not backed by funding, the notice buoyed the hopes of activists who have engaged in a long and so-far fruitless effort to bring the chapel back to life.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026
They could only hope that the arrow had landed deep enough, or else it would be a long and potentially fruitless chase.
From "Huntress" by Malinda Lo
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.
