ineffectual
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The group has shown itself to be utterly ineffectual, unable to come up with a unified response to an international crisis.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 11, 2026
But its ineffectual japing, and Michaels’ inability to help himself when it comes to normalizing repugnant behavior in the name of chasing the zeitgeist, makes it a popular stop on the image rehab express.
From Salon • Mar. 6, 2026
A diplomat by nature and possessed of old-fashioned manners, he struggled as a party leader and his performances in the bear pit of Prime Minister's Questions were seen by many as ineffectual.
From BBC • Sep. 26, 2025
It’s also odd that the activist-minded Greengrass didn’t do more with so corporate a villain: legally responsible utility PG&E, represented in the movie by an ineffectual suit who is briefly yelled at.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 19, 2025
She could already see that losing her temper, which she did rarely because she was so afraid of being ineffectual, would only turn him away, leaving her still outside the gate, railing futilely.
From "The Haunting of Hill House" by Shirley Jackson
Vocabulary lists containing ineffectual
The Old Man and the Sea
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"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" by Ambrose Bierce
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The Haunting of Hill House
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