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.
Hearing the futile spinning of tires, neighbors came out en masse to figure out how to solve the problem.
From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026
Unless clear limits are introduced against "mistaken belief" in consent, victims' efforts may be "rendered futile", she told AFP.
From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026
The futile paradox of these so-called live-action adaptations is they require a tsunami of pixels to surround actual human performers with everything audiences adored the first time.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2026
Melissa Murray, a law professor at New York University, said she understands why Jackson might see compromise as futile in politically polarizing cases.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026
During one futile counterattack, “the French infantry made a gallant show, advancing across the Belgian beet fields with colors unfurled and bugles sounding the shrill notes of the ‘charge.’
From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman
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.
