useless
Americanadjective
-
of no use; not serving the purpose or any purpose; unavailing or futile.
It is useless to reason with him.
- Synonyms:
- inutile, worthless, valueless, profitless, fruitless
- Antonyms:
- effective
-
without useful qualities; of no practical good.
a useless person; a useless gadget.
- Synonyms:
- unusable, unserviceable
adjective
-
having no practical use or advantage
-
informal ineffectual, weak, or stupid
he's useless at history
Synonym Usage
Useless, futile, ineffectual, vain refer to that which is unavailing. That is useless which is unavailing because of the circumstances of the case or some inherent defect: It is useless to cry over spilt milk. Futile suggests wasted effort and complete failure to attain a desired end: All attempts were futile. That which is ineffectual weakly applies energy in an ill-advised way and does not produce a desired effect: an ineffectual effort. That which is vain is fruitless or hopeless even after all possible effort: It is vain to keep on hoping.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of useless
Explanation
When all else fails, you still have the word useless. Use this adjective when nothing is working and there is no hope of improvement. Less means "without." So something that is useless has no use or value, at least at the present time. Long ago, many blacksmiths concluded it was useless to try to get by making horseshoes after the automobile caught on. Their tools and supplies? Useless, so they thought. They moved on to other careers. Some even bought Fords. Fast forward about a hundred years. Ask antiques dealers if is it useless to present artifacts for sale to history buffs.
Vocabulary lists containing useless
Good Riddance
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 8
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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.
At just 20 years old, Nomark offers his 500,000 Instagram followers a how-to guide for rendering the cameras useless, raising awareness about the devices.
From Barron's ● Aug. 9, 2026
Now I watch it burn on a screen from a soft chair, an ocean and a lifetime away, useless.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
Henrietta can experience a sense of "despair and distress" during her luteal phase, including feeling as though she is useless or having "intense flashbacks to embarrassing or upsetting experiences".
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026
A. Dirk Moses, the journal’s senior editor since 2011, argues it is useless to distinguish intentional killing of civilians from collateral damage caused by strikes against terrorists.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
“It is useless, anyway. I cannot leave. A cage is a cage, no matter the heights to which it might climb.”
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
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.
