1
as in unsuccessful
producing no results
the prison is so well guarded that all attempts to escape have been futile
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in silly
lacking in seriousness or maturity
the futile chatter of gossip columnists about the comings and goings of Hollywood celebrities
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of futile
Telling people to evacuate with no plan — or even an actual route — seems pretty futile.
—
Inga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Feb. 2025
That disaster is remembered for the heroic action of federal worker Lenny Skutnik, a bystander who watched a helicopter’s futile effort to pull survivors from the river.
—Matt Leclercq, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 Jan. 2025
Loading your audio article SAN JOSE – San Jose Sharks defenseman Cody Ceci has been around long enough to know that trying to predict what’s going to happen at the NHL trade deadline – particularly five weeks ahead of time – can be a futile endeavor.
—Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 30 Jan. 2025
When asked if climate mitigation seems futile in the wake of the wildfires, Leffel said, the climate crisis that confronts the U.S. is a triage situation.
—Dipka Bhambhani, Forbes, 17 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for futile
Inga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Feb. 2025
That disaster is remembered for the heroic action of federal worker Lenny Skutnik, a bystander who watched a helicopter’s futile effort to pull survivors from the river.
—Matt Leclercq, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 Jan. 2025
Loading your audio article SAN JOSE – San Jose Sharks defenseman Cody Ceci has been around long enough to know that trying to predict what’s going to happen at the NHL trade deadline – particularly five weeks ahead of time – can be a futile endeavor.
—Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 30 Jan. 2025
When asked if climate mitigation seems futile in the wake of the wildfires, Leffel said, the climate crisis that confronts the U.S. is a triage situation.
—Dipka Bhambhani, Forbes, 17 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for futile
Recent Examples of Synonyms for futile
Adjective
-
The robber was unsuccessful in his attempt to take cash from the register and fled the scene.—
Deanese Williams-Harris,
Chicago Tribune,
19 Feb. 2025
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Kramer, a get-out-the-vote specialist, worked on ballot access for the campaign of former Democratic presidential hopeful Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota and also worked on Kanye West’s unsuccessful 2020 presidential campaign.—
Michael Dorgan,
Fox News,
18 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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My long-distance boyfriend often addressed letters with silly names or in-jokes.—
A.S. King,
TIME,
21 Feb. 2025
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Altuve, Espada and everyone in between are stressing the fluidity of a situation that once seemed silly but is transforming into one of baseball’s most fascinating storylines.—
Chandler Rome,
The Athletic,
20 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
In the Milky Way’s galactic magnetic field, the force is so weak that a standard compass would be virtually useless.—
Jake Parks,
Discover Magazine,
21 Feb. 2025
-
Several pharmacists in São Paulo repeatedly stressed that just a few hours at room temperature renders the medications useless.—
Flávia Milhorance,
New York Times,
15 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Able to be goofy, which is the opposite of what a lot of Black women are portrayed as on television.—
Angelique Jackson,
Variety,
23 Feb. 2025
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Image Wood’s critique — the way technology has left us prone to dysfunctional loneliness — is trenchant, but his approach is fundamentally goofy.—
Ismail Muhammad,
New York Times,
20 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The crowd got loose and giddy as Dončić was introduced last, conspicuously after LeBron James.—
Steven Louis Goldstein,
The Athletic,
12 Feb. 2025
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The movie concludes with a twenty-two-minute take that’s too giddy a jolt to spoil.—
Richard Brody,
The New Yorker,
5 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Futile.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/futile. Accessed 1 Mar. 2025.
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