1
as in null
having no legal or binding force
the congressional resolution has symbolic value only, as it relates to a matter governed by the states and is thus nugatory
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in minor
lacking importance
the book is entertaining, but its contributions to Shakespearean scholarship are nugatory
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of nugatory
Women directors abound in the S&S list: Two Akermans, two Agnès Vardas (none by her husband Jacques Demy, a superior artist), a nugatory Jane Campion soap opera, Vera Chitilová’s obscure Czech feminist screed, etc.
—
Armond White, National Review, 7 Dec. 2022
But the benefits to Russia longer term could be nugatory.
—W. James Antle Iii, The Week, 4 Mar. 2022
It could be used to rationalize stealing the pennies from a dead man’s eyes, true, even considering the nugatory value of the contemporary penny.
—Marilynne Robinson, The New York Review of Books, 27 May 2020
Yet all of these questions seem, increasingly, merely nostalgic, nugatory, in the face of the dissolution of the common solidarity of principles that had once made the liberation happen.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 6 June 2019
Armond White, National Review, 7 Dec. 2022
But the benefits to Russia longer term could be nugatory.
—W. James Antle Iii, The Week, 4 Mar. 2022
It could be used to rationalize stealing the pennies from a dead man’s eyes, true, even considering the nugatory value of the contemporary penny.
—Marilynne Robinson, The New York Review of Books, 27 May 2020
Yet all of these questions seem, increasingly, merely nostalgic, nugatory, in the face of the dissolution of the common solidarity of principles that had once made the liberation happen.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 6 June 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nugatory
Adjective
-
To reporters late Sunday evening and later on social media, Trump claimed the pardons are null because Biden had used an autopen rather than sign by hand.—
Savannah Kuchar,
USA TODAY,
17 Mar. 2025
-
Does her despondent demeanor and null motivation make Elsa herself an ideal pick to surrender her life?—
Carlos Aguilar,
Variety,
11 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Aftershocks are typically minor adjustments along the portion of a fault that slipped at the time of the initial earthquake.—
William B. Davis,
New York Times,
28 Mar. 2025
-
The incident, while ultimately only a minor one, did impact the rest of their vacation.—
Paul Du Quenoy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Until a court tells ICE its removal order is invalid, the agency will follow its regulations, Jafek added.—
Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton,
Denver Post,
28 Mar. 2025
-
President Trump Monday claimed that pardons dished out by former President Biden to members of the congressional committee that investigated Jan. 6 are invalid because they were signed using an autopen.—
Dave Goldiner,
New York Daily News,
17 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Lee already had six permanent tattoos –– small ones easily hidden by clothing –– and thought this was a good opportunity to try out a more visible tattoo.—
Alyssa Goldberg,
USA Today,
7 Apr. 2025
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Hybrid solutions are currently typically used for small systems.—
ILYA Likhov,
Forbes.com,
7 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The 29-year-old still has two years left on the contract and ESPN, citing unnamed sourcing, reported late last year that Watson and the team agreed to rework his contract to add void years and move his dead salary cap into 2030.—
Ben Morse,
CNN Money,
1 Apr. 2025
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The void year concept was used on quarterback Zach Wilson.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
1 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Governed by a growth mindset devoted to the logic of disruption, moving fast and breaking things, a flourishing structure of feeling about AI and art history has sprung up on the grounds of very little AI-and-art-history to have feelings about.—
Sonja Drimmer,
Artforum,
1 Apr. 2025
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Such a large amount could indicate that Buffett, who’s famous for buying when prices are low, may see little worth purchasing in a stock market that critics had called too expensive.—
Stan Choe,
Los Angeles Times,
31 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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What this means isn’t that this music is cheap or worthless.—
Mikal Gilmore,
Rolling Stone,
30 Mar. 2025
-
So restricted in scope as to be nearly worthless and thus is rarely utilized.—
Jay Adkisson,
Forbes.com,
27 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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International museums in 2024 collectively experienced a slight dip in attendance that marks a return to normalcy in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis, the Art Newspaper reports.—
News Desk,
Artforum,
1 Apr. 2025
-
Instead of the pants flowing to the ground, Davis opted to tuck the hem of her pants into her black pointed-toe boots with a slight heel.—
Julia Teti,
Footwear News,
1 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nugatory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nugatory. Accessed 15 Apr. 2025.
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