feckless

adjective

feck·​less ˈfek-ləs How to pronounce feckless (audio)
1
: weak, ineffective
She can't rely on her feckless son.
2
: worthless, irresponsible
a feckless maneuver that could only serve to strengthen the enemySimon Schama
fecklessly adverb
fecklessness noun

Did you know?

A feckless person is lacking in feck. And what, you may ask, is feck? In Scots—our source of fecklessfeck means "majority" or "effect." The term is ultimately an alteration of the Middle English effect. So something without feck is without effect, i.e., ineffective. In the past, feckful (meaning "efficient, effective," "sturdy," or "powerful") made an occasional appearance, but in this case, the weak has outlived the strong: feckless is a commonly used English word, but feckful has proven, well, feckless.

Examples of feckless in a Sentence

She can't rely on her feckless son. a well-intentioned but feckless response to the rise in school violence
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
As Vinayak recounts his family’s history, the men were feckless and the women saved the day. Radha Vatsal june 20, Literary Hub, 20 June 2025 Delegitimizing the judiciary, the last constitutional brake when the legislature is co-opted and feckless? Garry Kasparov, The Atlantic, 17 Apr. 2025 Compare this to the feckless impotence of Donald Trump or Andrew Cuomo. Steven W. Thrasher june 23, Literary Hub, 23 June 2025 Now go to the French Laundry and stuff your lying face with caviar while Los Angeles burns YET AGAIN under your feckless leadership. Megan Cartwright, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for feckless

Word History

Etymology

Scots, from feck effect, majority, from Middle English (Scots) fek, alteration of Middle English effect

First Known Use

circa 1585, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of feckless was circa 1585

Browse Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Feckless.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/feckless. Accessed 10 Jul. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on feckless

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!