as in aimless
having or seeming to have no purpose or reason
I have to go to another purposeless meeting tonight. purposeless suffering
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Recent Examples of purposeless
Marine biologists had thought that the pelvic bones were purposeless in the marine environment, and would eventually disappear given another million or so years of evolution.
—
Carl Engelking, Discover Magazine, 9 Sep. 2014
But here’s a question: How much longer can the country afford to lure so many of its promising talents into a life of purposeless paper-pushing and legalized economic vandalism that antitrust has become?
—Holman W. Jenkins, WSJ, 10 May 2022
Religion gives meaning to human lives, which otherwise can feel purposeless.
—WSJ, 21 Dec. 2021
In How To Do Nothing, Jenny Odell talks about how the pursuit of productivity — driven by capitalism, competition, and consumption — has redirected our attention outward, leaving us feeling empty and purposeless.
—refinery29.com, 7 Sep. 2021
Although gender is effectively purposeless—if not irrelevant—in gaming, my brothers reflected society's obsession with forcing others to choose between pink or blue.
—Jamie Valentino, Wired, 22 June 2021
These protests are nearly all disingenuous, false and specious, and meant to utilize fear to continue a tragic and purposeless war.
—Matthew Hoh, CNN, 17 May 2021
In Mazars, Trump may yet be able to convince the lower courts that Congress’s rationale for seeking his financial records is too broad, too partisan, or too purposeless.
—Matt Ford, The New Republic, 9 July 2020
Well, given the malignant chaos of a purposeless universe, what’s one little false allegation in the scheme of things?
—USA TODAY, 24 Mar. 2020
Carl Engelking, Discover Magazine, 9 Sep. 2014
But here’s a question: How much longer can the country afford to lure so many of its promising talents into a life of purposeless paper-pushing and legalized economic vandalism that antitrust has become?
—Holman W. Jenkins, WSJ, 10 May 2022
Religion gives meaning to human lives, which otherwise can feel purposeless.
—WSJ, 21 Dec. 2021
In How To Do Nothing, Jenny Odell talks about how the pursuit of productivity — driven by capitalism, competition, and consumption — has redirected our attention outward, leaving us feeling empty and purposeless.
—refinery29.com, 7 Sep. 2021
Although gender is effectively purposeless—if not irrelevant—in gaming, my brothers reflected society's obsession with forcing others to choose between pink or blue.
—Jamie Valentino, Wired, 22 June 2021
These protests are nearly all disingenuous, false and specious, and meant to utilize fear to continue a tragic and purposeless war.
—Matthew Hoh, CNN, 17 May 2021
In Mazars, Trump may yet be able to convince the lower courts that Congress’s rationale for seeking his financial records is too broad, too partisan, or too purposeless.
—Matt Ford, The New Republic, 9 July 2020
Well, given the malignant chaos of a purposeless universe, what’s one little false allegation in the scheme of things?
—USA TODAY, 24 Mar. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for purposeless
Adjective
-
To the untrained human, the Puppy Bowl may look like aimless cuteness.—
Emma Bowman,
NPR,
8 Feb. 2025
-
The aimless vessel was located near the eastern Caribbean nation of St. Kitts and Nevis around 11:30 a.m., the St. Kitts and Nevis Coast Guard said.—
Joseph Wilkinson,
New York Daily News,
30 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
However, trying to draw an AI line may be meaningless when the term itself is so all-encompassing.—
Marcus Jones,
IndieWire,
7 Feb. 2025
-
Her Washington insider status is meaningless during the next four years of the Trump administration and an unfriendly Congress.—
Letters To The Editor,
The Mercury News,
7 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Narrative has always felt very natural to me, probably because I was raised in a household of storytellers, and because formal linearity affords me a sense of aesthetic control over my very haphazard, exilic life.—
Emma Specter,
Vogue,
16 Jan. 2025
-
But most of those efforts were haphazard, devolved into infighting among Chicanosauruses and didn’t develop into a full-fledged movement.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
No civilians were injured, though four firefighters sustained minor injuries.—
Josh Ocampo,
New York Times,
7 Feb. 2025
-
Dad Drank Too Many 'Tall Boys,' Then Passed Out on His Baby Daughter, Causing 'Horrific' Suffocation While none of the suspects were injured during the incident, one officer from the Clovis Police Department was treated and released for a minor injury to their hand, the press release explained.—
Ingrid Vasquez,
People.com,
7 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The after: alone in a quiet kitchen, rinsing out wine glasses and marveling over how little the whole thing cost me.—
Kendra Vaculin,
Bon Appétit,
11 Feb. 2025
-
There's little to do besides replacing the tires and occasionally flushing the transmission fluid.—
Tim Stevens,
Ars Technica,
11 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Power losses also left area water pumps useless for hours during the 2017 Thomas fire.—
Grace Toohey,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2025
-
The holding midfielder Antonio Blanco tried to step into Yamal but a quick flick of his left foot meant that Blanco’s tackle was useless.—
Pol Ballús,
The Athletic,
3 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The forthcoming live-action remake of How to Train Your Dragon can’t help but feel somewhat pointless — the great cinematographer Roger Deakins already consulted on the original to make its animation as sweepingly realistic as possible.—
James Grebey,
Vulture,
31 Jan. 2025
-
Hence, the four are reunited, and their seemingly pointless work has resumed, but more mysteries are brewing beneath the sleek, minimalist surface of Lumon.—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes,
20 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
The French fashion house pointed to a slight improvement in Asia Pacific and North America sales across its Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and Bottega Veneta brands, but did not provide details on specific markets.—
Karen Gilchrist,
CNBC,
11 Feb. 2025
-
Last year, a pair of researchers claimed that the shockwaves of the shutdown could be felt as far as the moon, causing a slight dip in lunar surface temperatures.—
Nola Taylor Tillman,
Space.com,
10 Feb. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near purposeless
Cite this Entry
“Purposeless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/purposeless. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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