worthless

adjective

worth·​less ˈwərth-ləs 

1

a

: lacking worth : valueless

worthless currency

b

: useless

worthless to continue searching

2

: contemptible, despicable

a worthless criminal

worthlessly adverb

worthlessness noun

Synonyms

• chaffy
• empty
• junky
• no-good
• null
• vain
• valueless

Examples of worthless in a Sentence

The boots may be nice, but they're worthless if they don't fit you.

She's depressed and believes that she's worthless.

Recent Examples on the Web

If the equity portion were reduced to 57% with 3% put into bitcoin, the average return drops to 6.8% in the worthless scenario and jumps to 8.2% if bitcoin hits $1 million. —Jeanne Sahadi, CNN Money, 7 June 2025

But without sufficient funding and additional critical measures, these proclamations are worthless words. —Daniel Kolkey, Oc Register, 12 May 2025

Payment was then made via fraudulent and worthless wire transfers, the criminal complaint said, while the items were retained by Kingston. —Charlie Gile, NBC news, 29 Mar. 2025

Even as Amtrak officials were sitting with Hochul yesterday and offering her more worthless promises, the Amtrak Board of Directors was holding a rare public session. —New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 23 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1577, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

worthless

adjective

worth·​less ˈwərth-ləs 

1

a

: lacking worth : valueless

b

: useless

worthless to continue searching

2

: deserving of hatred or pity

a worthless coward

worthlessly adverb

worthlessness noun