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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Oh, the delicious irony of Mr. Only the Ivies Count Lest Your Child Fail to Launch having a daughter who’s in an aimless 19th month of a gap year between high school and college.—
Sophie Brookover,
Vulture,
21 Feb. 2025
-
The aimless adventure of a young kid crisscrossing the city at all hours of the day and night resonated deeply with me as an adolescent.—
Juliana Barbassa,
New York Times,
19 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
These were not the actions of a man who considered the game meaningless.—
Arpon Basu,
The Athletic,
17 Feb. 2025
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In the publishing industry, blurbs are somehow both incredibly important and also meaningless, given that most blurbs come through a system that connects the blurber and the book’s author, rather than being an independent, uncompromised judgment.—
John Warner,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
These are professionals at work here, and yet the staging of virtually every kinetic showstopper feels haphazard at best.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
6 Feb. 2025
-
This is evident in the models styled in suits without shirts or asymmetrical fur elements that feel both haphazard and intentionally crafted.—
Brett F. Braley-Palko,
Forbes,
21 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
The availability of Michael Porter Jr While the 6'10 forward is, somewhat ironically, out these days with a minor hamstring injury, his overall availability this season - and last - has offered a major boost to the Nuggets.—
Morten Stig Jensen,
Forbes,
20 Feb. 2025
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The argument escalated, and the rapper allegedly fired a handgun at the acquaintance, who sustained minor injuries, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.—
Tracy Wright,
Fox News,
19 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Many Manchester United supporters still lament the removal of the words ‘Football Club’ from the crest in 1998 — controversial at the time, but the same words or the initials ‘F.C.’ are now regularly dispensed with little comment.—
Mark Critchley,
The Athletic,
23 Feb. 2025
-
The sidewalks have been cleared of snow by little sidewalk snowplows.—
Joseph O’Neill,
The New Yorker,
23 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
In the Milky Way’s galactic magnetic field, the force is so weak that a standard compass would be virtually useless.—
Jake Parks,
Discover Magazine,
21 Feb. 2025
-
Several pharmacists in São Paulo repeatedly stressed that just a few hours at room temperature renders the medications useless.—
Flávia Milhorance,
New York Times,
15 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
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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
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But if Maxey asserts himself as a nightly threat to erupt for 25-plus points, Embiid could take a slight step back on offense next season.—
Bryan Toporek,
Forbes,
24 Feb. 2025
-
This scale ranks objects from 0, meaning no impact, to 10, which is (ok, this is a slight exaggeration) nearly as bad as the destruction of Alderaan in Star Wars.—
Eric Berger,
Ars Technica,
24 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Purposeless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/purposeless. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
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