1
: having no teeth
2
a
: lacking in sharpness or bite
spoke in toothless generalities—
Arthur Hepner
Arthur Hepner
b
: lacking in means of enforcement or coercion : ineffectual
Examples of toothless in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Critics of Cal-OSHA have called workplace investigations performed by letter toothless, because only in-person inspections can result in fines.
—Joe Rubin, Sacbee.com, 29 Aug. 2025
Trump and European leaders should not repeat the disaster of the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, in which Ukraine agreed to give up its nuclear weapons in exchange for a toothless assurance that Russia would not attack it (and would, in fact, protect it).
—Michael McFaul, Foreign Affairs, 27 Aug. 2025
Regulation is still toothless Regulation has so far failed to keep pace.
—The Ai Insider, Interesting Engineering, 26 Aug. 2025
Overpreparers love checklists, but all too often, checklists are toothless.
—Melissa Sierra, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for toothless
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Joe Rubin, Sacbee.com, 29 Aug. 2025
Trump and European leaders should not repeat the disaster of the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, in which Ukraine agreed to give up its nuclear weapons in exchange for a toothless assurance that Russia would not attack it (and would, in fact, protect it).
—Michael McFaul, Foreign Affairs, 27 Aug. 2025
Regulation is still toothless Regulation has so far failed to keep pace.
—The Ai Insider, Interesting Engineering, 26 Aug. 2025
Overpreparers love checklists, but all too often, checklists are toothless.
—Melissa Sierra, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for toothless
Cite this Entry
“Toothless.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/toothless. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
toothless
adjective
tooth·less
ˈtüth-ləs 
: having no teeth
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