purposeful

adjective

pur·​pose·​ful ˈpər-pəs-fəl 

1

: having a purpose: such as

a

: meaningful

purposeful activities

b

: intentional

purposeful ambiguity

2

: full of determination

was soft-spoken but purposeful

purposefully

ˈpər-pəs-fə-lē 

adverb

purposefulness noun

Synonyms of purposeful

• resolute
• intent
• determined
• decisive
• positive
• confident

Examples of purposeful in a Sentence

a soft-spoken but purposeful criminal investigator

there's a difference between a purposeful lie and an accidental untruth

Recent Examples on the Web

Others see the magnification of extinction worries as a purposeful distraction from immediate, real-world AI harms. — Jared Perlo, NBC news, 19 Sep. 2026

Whether destruction or technological progress, both are purposeful activities, each with different conceptions of success or failure. — Brian Boucher, ARTnews.com, 17 Sep. 2026

But then so do Brentford, third in the xG table and inevitably full of purposeful running. — Duncan Alexander, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026

Musk himself shows up as an AI avatar — purposeful irony alert! — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 10 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1853, in the meaning defined at sense 1