Definition of ineffective
1 : not producing an intended effect : ineffectual ineffective lighting
2 : not capable of performing efficiently or as expected : incapable an ineffective executive
ineffectively
adverbineffectiveness
nounPeople Are Reading
Examples of ineffective in a Sentence
The treatment was ineffective against the disease.
an ineffective effort to reduce unemployment that only spurred inflation
Recent Examples of ineffective from the Web
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The county has recognized that locking kids up is an ineffective way to help them or the community in the long run.
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The first-half success forced Lue to downsize, pulling out an ineffective Tristan Thompson and replacing him with Richard Jefferson.
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The deal is coming across as ineffective to investors as more barrels enter the market from the U.S. and Libya, said Bob Yawger, director of the futures division at Mizuho Securities USA Inc. in New York.
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Since vomiting can have many causes, a diagnosis of CVS can be difficult, and patients often undergo invasive and ineffective treatments and diagnostic procedures before other causes are ruled out.
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The group helped the Chiefs to a 12-4 record and West Division title, but also couldn’t get the offense going in a home playoff loss to the Steelers, when the Chiefs mustered only 227 total yards and quarterback Alex Smith was largely ineffective.
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If popular teaching tropes reduce students’ complexity, so do ineffective classrooms.
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Miller transformed what until then had been a weak and ineffective union into a sports juggernaut.
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Its data and multimedia services were slow and ineffective.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ineffective'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
First Known Use of ineffective
1649
INEFFECTIVE Defined for English Language Learners
ineffective
playDefinition of ineffective for English Language Learners
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: not producing or having the effect you want : not effective
INEFFECTIVE Defined for Kids
ineffective
playDefinition of ineffective for Students
: not having the desired effect The medicine was ineffective.
ineffectively
adverbLearn More about ineffective
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See words that rhyme with ineffective Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for ineffective Spanish Central: Translation of ineffective Nglish: Translation of ineffective for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of ineffective for Arabic speakers
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