fruitless

adjective

fruit·​less ˈfrüt-ləs 

1

: unsuccessful

a fruitless attempt

2

: lacking or not bearing fruit

fruitlessly adverb

fruitlessness noun

Synonyms of fruitless

• unsuccessful
• futile
• useless

Choose the Right Synonym for fruitless

futile, vain, fruitless mean producing no result.

futile may connote completeness of failure or unwisdom of undertaking.

resistance had proved so futile that surrender was the only choice left

vain usually implies simple failure to achieve a desired result.

a vain attempt to get the car started

fruitless comes close to vain but often suggests long and arduous effort or severe disappointment.

fruitless efforts to obtain a lasting peace

Examples of fruitless in a Sentence

They made a fruitless attempt to find a solution.

It would be fruitless to continue.

Recent Examples on the Web

Around 1990, Opper and his partner George Christopulos, who died in 2017, were middle men during ultimately fruitless negotiations to bring the then-Los Angeles Raiders to Sacramento. — Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 13 Aug. 2026

Admittedly, debating player rankings is a fruitless exercise. — Bobby Burack Outkick, FOXNews.com, 4 Aug. 2026

Ranking titanic figures from different eras might be a fruitless and silly exercise to some, but this type of debate is also the one thing sports is supposed to be. — Ian O'Connor, New York Times, 30 July 2026

After an in-store search and police investigation proved fruitless, a mutual friend helped John reach then-Good Morning America host David Hartman. — Jessica Sager, PEOPLE, 27 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English fruytles, frutles, from fruyt, frut fruit entry 1 + -les -less

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for fruitless

• bootless
• rootless

Kids Definition

fruitless

adjective

fruit·​less ˈfrüt-ləs 

1

: not bearing fruit

2

: producing no good results : unsuccessful

a fruitless attempt

fruitlessly adverb

fruitlessness noun