fruitlessly
/ˈfruːtləsli/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈfruːtləsli/ (ame, ipa)
fruitlessly — adverb
1. in a manner that brings no useful outcome despite effort or repeated trying — fo
in a manner that brings no useful outcome despite effort or repeated trying — for example, searching all morning for keys that turn out to be locked inside the car.
Rania searched fruitlessly for her passport before the early flight to Cairo.
verb + fruitlessly: searched fruitlessly
The rescue team waited fruitlessly for a radio signal from the missing hikers.
waited fruitlessly for + noun
Eli tried fruitlessly to open the rusted gate behind the old farmhouse.
Lawyers argued fruitlessly with the judge about admitting the new witness.
Romi spent three weeks fruitlessly applying for jobs in the small coastal town.
- vainly
more literary; emphasises the wasted hope behind the effort
- unsuccessfully
neutral and most common; less formal than 'fruitlessly'
- in vain
set phrase; tends to come at the end of the clause
- successfully
the effort produced the intended outcome
- productively
the effort yielded useful results, not just an outcome
文法句型
verb + fruitlessly
fruitlessly + verb
用法筆記
Frequently follows verbs of effort, search, or attempt — `search`, `try`, `wait`, `argue`, `spend [time]`. Implies the effort was real and sustained; not used for trivial or one-off failures.