as in uselessness
the quality or state of being useless
The two engaged in a long discussion on the futility of war. He felt saddened by the apparent futility of his efforts to console her.
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Recent Examples of futility
Along with the life-saving food can be a message for the combatants to choose peace over the futility of war.
—
William Lambers, Hartford Courant, 19 Jan. 2026
Much of the storyline focuses on the futility of war, violence, and revenge.
—Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 15 Jan. 2026
These Ducks, who also made significant roster investments, are now running neck-and-neck with the abject futility of even the Dallas Eakins era.
—Andrew Knoll, Oc Register, 12 Jan. 2026
But the Bulls also can’t win with his current rim protection — a futility that hangs over the veteran in every game.
—Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 8 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for futility
William Lambers, Hartford Courant, 19 Jan. 2026
Much of the storyline focuses on the futility of war, violence, and revenge.
—Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 15 Jan. 2026
These Ducks, who also made significant roster investments, are now running neck-and-neck with the abject futility of even the Dallas Eakins era.
—Andrew Knoll, Oc Register, 12 Jan. 2026
But the Bulls also can’t win with his current rim protection — a futility that hangs over the veteran in every game.
—Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 8 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for futility
Recent Examples of Synonyms for futility
Noun
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Holding back tears, Marta called out the uselessness of comparing this season to last year’s championship run.—
Tamerra Griffin,
New York Times,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
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His motion veered between expressions of hopelessness and elaborate proposals for prisoner exchanges.—
Kinsey Crowley,
USA Today,
4 Feb. 2026
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The American intelligence community has long known that insurgent groups—many of which openly seek the destruction of the United States—rely on desperation, food insecurity, and hopelessness to gain recruits.—
Hana Kiros,
The Atlantic,
3 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Some can be tucked away in Triple-A, at the ready to be called up due to inevitable injury or ineffectiveness.—
Kevin Acee,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
25 Feb. 2026
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In an era when teams typically carry more pitchers than position players, versatility allows managers to make favorable substitutions off the bench and to fill in the gaps in the event of injuries or ineffectiveness.—
Abbey Mastracco,
New York Daily News,
22 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Theory 1 is that the Party has reached such a crisis of inefficacy in the Trump era that most things about it—its experienced personnel, its hydraulics of strategy and power—should be sold for scrap and rebuilt from the charismatic left.—
Nathan Heller,
New Yorker,
1 Feb. 2026
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Brands that rely solely on AI risk not just irrelevance, but inefficacy.—
Sean DallasKidd,
Forbes.com,
27 Aug. 2025
Noun
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But one series with four minutes remaining highlighted the fruitlessness of this effort.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Your tall tree did well to grow to 30 years of age but is now showing signs of maybe greening disease, trunk decline and nutrient deficiency in an accompanying email photo.—
Tom MacCubbin,
The Orlando Sentinel,
21 Feb. 2026
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For example, whitish nails might indicate a vitamin deficiency or liver disease.—
Andee Tagle,
NPR,
21 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Futility.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/futility. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.
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