purposeful

adjective

pur·​pose·​ful ˈpər-pəs-fəl How to pronounce purposeful (audio)
1
: having a purpose: such as
a
: meaningful
purposeful activities
b
: intentional
purposeful ambiguity
2
: full of determination
was soft-spoken but purposeful
purposefully adverb
purposefulness noun

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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
As Mahoney's statement about the Hobbs administration's purposeful omission of climate content from the plan suggests, opinions on how best to get the public on board with heat solutions vary. Joan Meiners, AZCentral.com, 1 Oct. 2025 Steinberg notes that the focus on language, and the lack of English in many of the episodes, was a purposeful decision to give viewers a small taste of what Amanda felt like. Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 1 Oct. 2025 Normalize engagement by making office attendance feel purposeful, not forced. Peter Cappelli, Big Think, 30 Sep. 2025 Their long passes were purposeful and targeted, intended to expose gaps in United’s system. Conor O'Neill, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for purposeful

Word History

First Known Use

1853, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of purposeful was in 1853

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Cite this Entry

“Purposeful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/purposeful. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.

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