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Glite Dictionary
inutile

inutile

1 9.9
Not useful or helpful
  • adjective
  • /ˈɪn.juː.tɪl/
  • Archaic
: inútil
  • His efforts were deemed inutile since no one paid attention to his suggestions.

Examples

  • She considered the old machine to be totally inutile after it broke down for the third time.

  • C'est inutile.

    Child 44 (2015)

  • The meeting was seen as inutile because no decisions were made and it lasted for hours.

Synonyms

useless
vsinutile
481 1.0

Not able to do the job it is made for

means a general lack of value rather than only practical failure

Antonyms

useful
865 1.0

Helps you do practical tasks or solve a problem

valuable
700 2.5

Very useful and important, for example advice or skills

How Useful

indispensable
42 4.6
valuable
700 2.5
useful
865 1.0
ineffective
83 3.4
inutile
  • Archaic
1 9.9

Surface Forms

inutile positive

Morphology

inutile = utile (semi-transparent) = in + utile

The form is a regular negation (in- + utile), but 'utile' is rare in English so many learners will not recognise the base.

Etymology

Inutile comes from the parts in- 'not' and utilis 'useful', the same root you see in utility and useful. So it simply means 'not useful', which is why it describes something with no use or value.