From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishfutilefu‧tile /ˈfjuːtaɪl $ -tl/ ●○○ adjective POINTLESSactions that are futile are useless because they have no chance of being successful SYN pointless OPP worthwhilea futile attempt/effort a futile attempt to save the paintings from the flames My efforts to go back to sleep proved futile.it is futile to do something It was futile to continue the negotiations. —futility /fjuːˈtɪləti/ noun [uncountable] This sums up Owen’s thoughts on the futility of war.
Examples from the Corpus
futile• All efforts to save the child proved futile.• Until attitudes at work are changed, attempts to improve performance are likely to prove futile.• But a sense of apathy arises from the feeling that life is pointless and futile.• It was all so sad, so depressing, so futile.• The attempt to change his mind proved futile.• Demonstrators condemned the summit as a futile and fruitless exercise.• Kevin made one last futile attempt to persuade Sandra to go with him, then left.• The goal is not to punish the rebels, but to convince them that it is futile to resist.• The point to recognize is, of course, that it is futile to waste time classifying studies into neat little boxes.a futile attempt/effort• These are the remains of unfortunate wretches driven to kill themselves in a futile attempt to escape the torments of the Castle.• They showed no qualms in spending £3 billion in a futile attempt to prop up the Pound.• Sundays he slept even later than usual, in a futile effort to avoid the day.• Minutes later a team of paramedics began a futile effort to revive the boy.Origin futile (1500-1600) Latin futilis “that pours out easily, useless” 