1
as in unsuccessful
not producing the desired result
his efforts to restore the neglected houseplant back to health were belated and sadly inefficacious
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in futile
producing no results
an inefficacious medication for a rare form of tuberculosis
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of inefficacious
Most wore inefficacious cloth masks, too.
—
James Lileks, National Review, 25 Aug. 2022
Day — who grew up watching the spelling bee — came up with the concept of exploring the psyche of a winner with an ultimately inefficacious career in 2015 while at a UCB improv sketch-writing class.
—NBC News, 6 Oct. 2020
James Lileks, National Review, 25 Aug. 2022
Day — who grew up watching the spelling bee — came up with the concept of exploring the psyche of a winner with an ultimately inefficacious career in 2015 while at a UCB improv sketch-writing class.
—NBC News, 6 Oct. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inefficacious
Adjective
-
Officials said he was found semiconscious on the River Trail on June 30 but resuscitation attempts were unsuccessful.—
Anthony Robledo,
USA Today,
24 May 2025
-
Efforts to refloat the ship during high tide on Thursday were unsuccessful.—
Jasmine Baehr,
FOXNews.com,
23 May 2025
Adjective
-
Cutting spending wasted on a futile pursuit of a global empire is not just a fiscal necessity.—
Ron Paul,
Oc Register,
20 May 2025
-
Desperate Steve Kerr frequently toggled his non-Draymond Green big men as late as the second round of the playoffs in a futile effort to contain the giants of the Minnesota Timberwolves around the rim.—
Alex Kirschenbaum,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 May 2025
Adjective
-
But banking on state governments to match the resources of the federal government—cash, expertise, largess—is an inefficient use of funds, as states in most cases have to stay in the black and cannot use debt for operations like a from-the-ground-up rebuild.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
29 May 2025
-
All year long the Red Sox have been plagued by inconsistent offense, inefficient pitching and inexplicable lapses on defense and on the base paths.—
Mac Cerullo,
Boston Herald,
28 May 2025
Adjective
-
The character who can go through walls is useless, because beyond the walls is nothing but dirt.—
Katy Waldman,
New Yorker,
24 May 2025
-
And beyond… Generalizations can be either good or bad, useful or useless.—
Eli Amdur,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
Adjective
-
At least for now, the biggest differentiator between effective and ineffective use of AI for marketing strategy or content production is the human in the driver’s seat.—
Andrew Allen,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2025
-
This can make these agents ineffective, allowing bacteria to grow.151617 Phthalates Phthalates are chemicals added to cosmetic products for various reasons.—
Sherri Gordon,
Health,
20 May 2025
Adjective
-
Still, Marles suggested the Trump administration’s aggressive trade policies were counterproductive.—
Tara Copp,
Chicago Tribune,
31 May 2025
-
At times of economic, social and planetary upheaval, best practice is counterproductive.—
Kian Bakhtiari,
Forbes.com,
25 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Inefficacious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inefficacious. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share