How to Use futile in a Sentence

futile

adjective
Definition of futilenext
Synonyms for futilenext
  • All our efforts proved futile.
  • The man made a few more futile attempts to rob the store.
    — Minyvonne Burke, NBC News, 8 July 2023
  • But the new Echo Show is proof that the effort isn't futile.
    — Valentina Palladino, Ars Technica, 8 Oct. 2018
  • Then: the futile attempts to find a friend who would take her in.
    — Washington Post, 21 Aug. 2020
  • Who knows whether the Charge of the Lance Brigade was the futile and stupid gesture the Sox needed?
    — Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 6 Sep. 2022
  • One detainee kicks the bars in a futile attempt to force the door open.
    — Patrick J. McDonnell, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2023
  • The tiger slowly moved its paws in a futile attempt to block the blows.
    — New York Times, 26 July 2019
  • On the biggest lot, he soon got stuck in a futile cul-de-sac of trucks.
    — Washington Post, 21 Dec. 2021
  • In such a case, resistance is not futile, for the virus that is.
    — Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes, 30 June 2022
  • And yet, in the midst of futile attempts to grind out yardage on the ground, the game’s primal Cro-Magnon essence was fun to watch.
    — Gordon Monson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 11 Sep. 2022
  • The task must feel futile for Oregon State fans on game days.
    — oregonlive, 29 Sep. 2019
  • The futile attempts to comprehend this heinous act, and the hours of hugs and tears, soon gave way to anger.
    — Ted Deutch, Variety, 18 Oct. 2023
  • Brekke was called out on the night the ship sank in a futile effort of recovery.
    — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, 27 Dec. 2018
  • The efforts to scare off Sam and Jay are heroic but futile.
    — John Anderson, WSJ, 5 Oct. 2021
  • Some lessons take a long and seemingly futile amount of time to learn.
    — David G. Allan, CNN, 2 Feb. 2023
  • His wife Judy and best friend Dan Aykroyd's attempts to get him help were futile.
    — Leena Kim, Town & Country, 24 May 2019
  • Hao might have been packing for a life of exile or a futile trip to the airport.
    — Han Zhang, New York Times, 3 Aug. 2023
  • Its virtues are too many to count; doing so would be futile.
    — New York Times, 20 Apr. 2021
  • Like all good galas, the pomp and circumstance are not futile.
    — Isiah Magsino, Vogue, 29 Sep. 2022
  • In the aftermath of the past 12 months, setting such goals feels futile.
    — Mirel Zaman, refinery29.com, 31 Dec. 2020
  • The Black Knights scored again later in the quarter, forcing UConn to play a futile catch-up game.
    — Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 19 Nov. 2022
  • His search for that first inmate who read it proved futile.
    — AZCentral.com, 1 Oct. 2020
  • After the puck bounced off Mrázek, the Hawks goalie dived in a futile attempt to cover but was too late.
    — Phil Thompson, Chicago Tribune, 14 Dec. 2022
  • The race to the bottom on price is futile; the key lies in patient and resilient entrepreneurship.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2023
  • As for the latter, Pinochet thinks that’s a futile endeavor.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2023
  • My fear is that complaining to the owner will be futile.
    — Amy Dickinson, oregonlive, 27 Mar. 2021
  • All those futile, flamboyant projects have come to a halt.
    — Hernan Diaz, Harper’s Magazine , 10 Feb. 2023
  • By that measure, no other team in the majors has been so futile.
    — Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2023
  • But those efforts are largely futile in the face of a major drought like the one the country is facing.
    — Lyric Li, Washington Post, 23 Aug. 2022
  • Diego said he was left with the impression that speaking out would be futile.
    — Los Angeles Times, 28 May 2021

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'futile.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: