1
as in futility
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2
as in pointlessness
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Recent Examples of uselessness
The fear of uselessness explains why the banker Eric Tao (Ken Leung) leaves a cushy retirement to get back to finance, even at the cost of neglecting his kids.
—
Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2026
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
Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2026
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for uselessness
Noun
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This stretch of this type of season could easily adopt a tone of futility.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
2 Mar. 2026
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After nearly a decade of futility that’s left them with the NBA’s longest current playoff drought, the Hornets (30-31) are growing up.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
28 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Such expeditions can turn into a Buddhistic exercise in enlightened pointlessness.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
24 Nov. 2025
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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Mondragon, though, mostly transcends meaninglessness by having to stare intensely at a stranger’s reaction — the medium is the message, as always.—
Christopher Borrelli,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Feb. 2026
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In much of government, the line between neutral analysis and policy advocacy is blurry to the point of meaninglessness.—
James Broughel,
Forbes.com,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Problems shrink into insignificance.—
Shilo Urban,
Travel + Leisure,
22 Nov. 2025
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Her difficulty lay in her distance from the random violence of insignificance.—
Rachel Cusk,
New Yorker,
24 Aug. 2025
Noun
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All this inanity takes place over the course of a handful of days, during which no one ever seems to change clothes.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Feb. 2026
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The music movie tries to capture the insanity and inanity of being a modern celebrity.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The emptiness was an eerie reminder of how the country felt during Covid-19.—
Emma Graham,
CNBC,
3 Mar. 2026
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In another photographer’s hands, Atget’s subjects, which show how thought and vision can work in tandem with emptiness, would likely be only a backdrop to the drama of humanity.—
Hilton Als,
New Yorker,
2 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Uselessness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/uselessness. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
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