1
as in unsuccessful
not producing the desired result
an ineffective effort to reduce unemployment that only spurred inflation
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in futile
producing no results
an ineffective medication that will be denied FDA approval
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ineffective
In doing so, the TV adaptation fumbled the comics’ superior final act, turning Butcher’s own ignominious death at the hands of Hughie into an ineffective afterthought.
—
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 20 May 2026
Suspensions One Kansas City food business was suspended due to ineffective pest control measures.
—Joseph Hernandez, Kansas City Star, 16 May 2026
Glossip was first convicted of capital murder in 1998, a decision that was overturned in 2001 due to ineffective defense counsel, per the outlet.
—Jordana Comiter, PEOPLE, 15 May 2026
These formulations may be ineffective.
—Jennifer Lefton, Verywell Health, 15 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for ineffective
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 20 May 2026
Suspensions One Kansas City food business was suspended due to ineffective pest control measures.
—Joseph Hernandez, Kansas City Star, 16 May 2026
Glossip was first convicted of capital murder in 1998, a decision that was overturned in 2001 due to ineffective defense counsel, per the outlet.
—Jordana Comiter, PEOPLE, 15 May 2026
These formulations may be ineffective.
—Jennifer Lefton, Verywell Health, 15 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for ineffective
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ineffective
Adjective
-
Attempts to interview him were unsuccessful.—
Sierra van der Brug,
Daily News,
28 May 2026
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Trump has denied Carroll’s allegations against him and tried to appeal both verdicts but has been unsuccessful in both cases, putting him on the verge of having to pay out millions.—
Alison Durkee,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2026
Adjective
-
The series follows an upstanding family man who spirals into a life of crime after killing someone in a bicycle accident, driven by the noble but futile goal of never hurting anyone ever again.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
17 May 2026
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But this story has a happier, less futile ending.—
Deborah Treisman,
New Yorker,
17 May 2026
Adjective
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The reason for this decision may be how the rapid buildout of Colossus incorporated a mix of different Nvidia GPU chips that was very inefficient for AI training workloads, according to reporting by Tom’s Hardware.—
Jeremy Hsu,
ArsTechnica,
21 May 2026
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Modern classical algorithms use other methods but remain inefficient because the execution time increases exponentially with the size of the number to be factored.—
Zeeya Merali,
Scientific American,
19 May 2026
Adjective
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But keep it simple; detailed information is useless if children can’t digest it.—
Orlando Sentinel Staff,
The Orlando Sentinel,
24 May 2026
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The code would typically write data to illicit access cards in such a way that the cards failed security checks and became useless for piracy.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
22 May 2026
Adjective
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As a result, the most important clay-court of all chucking players back into their old way of seeing and understanding the contours of a tennis match is hugely counterproductive.—
Matthew Futterman,
New York Times,
23 May 2026
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But Israel tops all concerns for some leftists, so Greene’s reversal on the issue is enough to win their support, and AOC’s refusal to embrace her is seen as a counterproductive purity test.—
Arash Azizi,
The Atlantic,
22 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ineffective.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ineffective. Accessed 30 May. 2026.
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