as in futile
producing no results
an unavailing effort to avert a war
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of unavailing
The position advanced by the states is legally unavailing as a matter of longstanding and well-established law.
—
WSJ, 25 July 2018
Efforts to aid him with lifeboats, three of which were ineffectually trying to breast the heavy sea, were unavailing, while a lifeline, held by a number of rescuers, was carried far out into the surf by a number of swimmers.
—sandiegouniontribune.com, 6 May 2018
WSJ, 25 July 2018
Efforts to aid him with lifeboats, three of which were ineffectually trying to breast the heavy sea, were unavailing, while a lifeline, held by a number of rescuers, was carried far out into the surf by a number of swimmers.
—sandiegouniontribune.com, 6 May 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unavailing
Adjective
-
Their effort to find a home in Overtown seemed futile until Miami-Dade County Commissioner Keon Hardemon, who grew up in Liberty City, conceived a brilliant idea.—
Dorothy Jenkins Fields,
Miami Herald,
9 Jan. 2026
-
But the rally felt less threatening than futile.—
Zach Fisch,
The Atlantic,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Earlier attempts to develop a commercial market for pecans based on growing trees from seeds had been unsuccessful, as trees originating from seeds have a long lag period until maturation and production of nuts.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
23 Jan. 2026
-
First responders attempted life-saving measures on EJ, but were unsuccessful.—
Caroline Zimmerman,
Kansas City Star,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Brown’s statement on Monday was mostly useless corporate-speak.—
Paul Dehner Jr,
New York Times,
6 Jan. 2026
-
This tiny amount of copper acts as a molecular steering wheel, preventing sugar molecules from shattering into useless carbon dioxide.—
Aman Tripathi,
Interesting Engineering,
4 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Unavailing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unavailing. Accessed 24 Jan. 2026.
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