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
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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
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Without one, an aimless day can lead to overwhelm and delaying responsibilities, sources said.—
Kristen Rogers,
CNN,
27 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
These hang-outs largely unfurl as a meaningless montage of coverage, packaged with some punchy, comedy-forward exchanges.—
J. Kim Murphy,
Variety,
24 Jan. 2025
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Here are four reasons why seemingly meaningless activities are deeply beneficial to our well-being.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes,
21 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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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
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Each county conducts the count differently — San Francisco's was reportedly haphazard last year — and relies on volunteers, outreach workers and government employees who often get varying levels of training.—
Shawna Chen,
Axios,
8 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Fewer than one in three arrestees were charged with any offense, and most of those were for minor infractions like jaywalking, littering, and blocking sidewalks.—
V.N. Trinh / Made by History,
TIME,
27 Jan. 2025
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The epigenetic clock theory suggests aging occurs due to accumulation of epigenetic modifications, or minor changes to the chemical structure of DNA that do not alter the underlying sequence but instead change which genes are on or off.—
Ashley Mackin Solomon,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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The post-election period has seen a rather dramatic fall off in MSNBC’s audience, likely as so many Democrats tuned out in post-election fatigue or little desire to watch Donald Trump savor his election victory.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
30 Jan. 2025
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Given how little Cohen material has been auctioned off, the sale will be also a barometer of how much Cohen’s legend has grown since his death in 2016.—
David Browne,
Rolling Stone,
30 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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If that happens, the app will become instantly useless.—
Sabrina Moreno,
Axios,
17 Jan. 2025
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Without updates, the TikTok app will eventually be rendered useless for creators.—
Veronica Ramirez,
Forbes,
11 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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That isn’t to say that setting goals is pointless—on the contrary, committing yourself to healthier routines is one of the best ways to stave off burnout, improve your fitness, and feel better generally.—
Morgan Fargo,
Vogue,
30 Jan. 2025
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As in Ukraine, Biden made the fateful decision to cling to war aims that had become untenable, even as pointless civilian suffering escalated and the political upside of his posture vanished.—
Yaakov Katz,
Newsweek,
16 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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According to the weather service, there were be a marginal to slight risk of flooding in the North Bay; in the interior portions of the East Bay and South Bay; and in the Santa Cruz Mountains.—
Jason Green,
The Mercury News,
31 Jan. 2025
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Overall, personal income grew 0.4% in December, marking a slight acceleration from the 0.3% gain seen the month before, according to Friday’s report.—
Alicia Wallace,
CNN,
31 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near purposeless
Cite this Entry
“Purposeless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/purposeless. Accessed 9 Feb. 2025.
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