to no avail

idiom

: without success
They tried to discuss the issue calmly, but to no avail.

Examples of to no avail in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The screenplay amounts to a series of frustrating misunderstandings, followed by even more frustrating explanations, as the characters yell above one another to no avail. Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 23 Nov. 2023 Some of the farmers complained to the local government, to no avail. Alexander Sammon, Harper's Magazine, 16 Oct. 2023 Before the game, staff tried catching the bats with nets or dispersing them with loud noise, to no avail. Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Nov. 2023 Heavy machinery could be seen digging through the area, but to no avail. Salvador Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2023 Els says various government agencies and private hostage negotiators got in touch, grasping for more clues about her husband's whereabouts -- but to no avail. Allie Weintraub, ABC News, 5 Oct. 2023 Since then, lawmakers have rallied for additional money, to no avail. Abha Bhattarai, Washington Post, 29 Oct. 2023 The driver was pursued at high speed by Mr. Asaro to no avail. Sam Roberts, New York Times, 27 Oct. 2023 Johnson, a multi-millionaire, spent $3.5 million on advertising this year to no avail, per AdImpact, an ad-tracking service. Alex Tabet, NBC News, 20 Oct. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'to no avail.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Dictionary Entries Near to no avail

Cite this Entry

“To no avail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/to%20no%20avail. Accessed 8 Dec. 2023.

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