Lifeless

How to spell lifeless

8 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce lifeless

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does lifeless mean?

1. adjectiveDead, or having no living things; alternatively, lacking energy, spirit, or interest.

Lifeless in a sentence

• The dusty plain looked dry and lifeless under the midday sun.

• The abandoned mining town felt grey and lifeless at midday.

Where does lifeless come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This is a native English compound that traces back to Old English, where 'lif' meant the state of being alive or the span of one's existence, and the suffix '-leas', meaning 'free from' or 'without', could be attached to almost any noun. Joining the two gave 'liflEas', literally 'without life', a form recorded well over a thousand years ago. The same '-less' suffix survives in dozens of everyday words such as 'careless', 'hopeless', and 'fearless', all built on the idea of lacking something. The spelling stayed remarkably stable because both parts are plain Germanic words that never needed to be reshaped by French or Latin influence. The only real spelling trap is the double 's' at the join, since the suffix is '-less' and not '-les'.

How the word is built

• life (from Old English lif: living being, existence)
• -less (without)