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

Discovered almost instantly, this latest raid in Kenner had proved brief and fruitless. —Daniel Brook, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026

Using ground meat with a lower fat percentage and forgoing the fruitless task of achieving any browning by cooking it hard means the meat will remain succulent and tender. —Jesse Szewczyk, Bon Appetit Magazine, 23 Mar. 2026

After a fruitless Minnesota power play, emotions started to boil over, as a tie-up along the boards in the Toronto end of the ice devolved into a full-on scrum, with players from both teams ending up in the penalty box. —Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 16 Mar. 2026

After a year of fruitless meetings with investors and actors who universally dismissed the project, Hwang made the decision to bury the script in his computer and wait. —Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 16 Mar. 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