Futile

How to spell futile

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce futile

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does futile mean?

1. adjectivePointless because it has no chance of succeeding or producing any useful result.

Futile in a sentence

• Any attempt to fix the engine without the right tools proved futile.

• Arguing with the parking inspector was futile, so she simply paid the fine.

Where does futile come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word comes from the Latin futilis, which meant 'leaky' or 'pouring out easily', and by extension 'untrustworthy' or 'good for nothing'. The root is thought to connect to fundere, meaning 'to pour', so the original image was of a vessel that could not hold its contents and was therefore useless. From that concrete picture of a leaking jug, the sense widened to anything that fails to achieve its purpose. English adopted the word in the middle of the sixteenth century, taking it either directly from Latin or by way of French futile. The everyday spelling trap is the unstressed ending: the word sounds like it could finish in '-il' or '-el', yet it keeps the Latin '-ile', the same ending found in 'fragile' and 'agile'.

How the word is built

• fut- (from Latin futilis: leaky, vain)
• -ile (adjective suffix)