useless

adjective

ˈyüs-ləs How to pronounce useless (audio)
Definition of uselessnext
1
as in impractical
not capable of being put to use or account a garage full of useless junk

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in futile
producing no results a useless attempt to reach an agreement

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of useless Likewise, politicians who cannot find consensus and pass legislation are useless. — Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 24 Aug. 2026 The scoring models Claude used to rank its own work were good at separating winners from losers within a target, and useless at predicting which targets would fail. — Jon Markman, Forbes.com, 23 Aug. 2026 Garcia and Vargas Bustamante both agreed that not all of the health advice available on social media is useless, predatory or incorrect. — Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 21 Aug. 2026 Their mother is useless and irresponsible, and Neil can’t stand her. — Abigail Van Buren, Mercury News, 18 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for useless
Recent Examples of Synonyms for useless
  1. impractical
  2. futile
  3. unusable
  4. unsuccessful
  5. unsuitable
Adjective
  • Direct transmission becomes increasingly impractical beyond that point.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 14 Aug. 2026
  • It's born from combining advances across science, engineering and computation in ways that make previously impractical technologies commercially viable.
    — Cyrus Wadia, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of impractical
Adjective
  • The receiving corps is still a question mark, and depending solely on De’Von Achane seems futile.
    — Gladys Louise Tyler, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026
  • Named Wilbur by the hive mind of social media, the animal blew up online after resident Jamaal Harrison posted a video to TikTok on Saturday showing his futile attempts to catch it on an e-bike.
    — Fedor Zarkhin, Los Angeles Times, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of futile
Adjective
  • Phoenix Semiconductor engineers helped NAVAIR recover a supply of unusable legacy chips for a safety-critical system on the F/A-18 Super Hornet.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 28 Aug. 2026
  • John Gruber, a tech blogger, posited that Claude would now more readily default to watermarked words, rather than unleash the full scope of its linguistic range, which might result in lower-quality text, or in some cases unusable prose.
    — Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of unusable
Adjective
  • Police said Reyes did not provide any form of identification, and attempts to identify him were unsuccessful.
    — Rafael Escalera Montoto, Arkansas Online, 23 Aug. 2026
  • Attempts by The Associated Press to determine who their defense attorneys were to request comment were unsuccessful.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of unsuccessful
Adjective
  • When channels are created with unsuitable blades, angles, or placement, transplanted hair may grow in an unnatural direction or produce an overly uniform appearance.
    — Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Websites often attract unsuitable clients due to ineffective copy, hindering business growth.
    — Jodie Cook, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of unsuitable

Browse Nearby Words

usefulness
useless
uselessness
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Cite this Entry

“Useless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/useless. Accessed 30 Aug. 2026.

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