ineffective
Americanadjective
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not effective; not producing results; ineffectual.
ineffective efforts; ineffective remedies.
-
inefficient or incompetent; incapable.
an ineffective manager.
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lacking in artistic effect, as a literary work, theatrical production, or painting.
adjective
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having no effect
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incompetent or inefficient
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of ineffective
Explanation
Use the adjective ineffective to describe something that doesn't work quite the way it's supposed to. You might complain about your ineffective guard dog, who wags his tail and licks everyone who comes to your house. When you're ineffective, you're unable to accomplish something you're trying to do. You might realize that you're an ineffective babysitter when you can't get the kids to go to bed. Ineffective comes from the Latin prefix in, "not, or opposite of," added to effective, whose Latin root is effectivus, "productive." When something's unproductive, inefficient, or incapable, it's ineffective.
Vocabulary lists containing ineffective
Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: in-, im-, il-, ir-
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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 generally think of mood boards and visualization as ineffective or a bit “woo-woo,” but research suggests that imagining yourself older can increase your retirement savings.
From MarketWatch • May 30, 2026
Capybara removals tend to be ineffective, Ibama, the environmental agency, wrote to me in an email, “since environmentally favorable areas are usually quickly reoccupied.”
From Slate • May 27, 2026
But the bans have become ineffective due to lax enforcement and because private-equity firms have devised workarounds to get economic and operational control of medical practices without violating the laws, Rooke-Ley said.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026
Ayton’s backup Jaxson Hayes was also neutralized in Saturday’s blowout, not returning to the game after just eight minutes and 30 seconds of mostly ineffective play.
From Los Angeles Times • May 10, 2026
More debilitating mathematically than ineffective or insufficient education are psychological factors.
From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos
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.
