Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Profitless |
ProfitlessAdjective1. Without profit or reward; "let us have no part in profitless quarrels"- D.D.Eisenhower; "How weary, flat, stale, and unprofitable / Seem to me all the uses of this world"- Shakespeare. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "profitless" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1258. (references) |
Synonym: ProfitlessSynonym: unprofitable (adj). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Inutility | Vain, empty, inane; gainless, profitless, fruitless; unserviceable, unprofitable; ill-spent; unproductive; hors de combat; effete, past work; (impaired); obsolete; (old); fit for the dust hole; good for nothing; of no earthly use; not worth having, not worth powder and shot; leading to no end, uncalled for; unnecessary, unneeded. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Profitless |
| English words defined with "profitless": dissipation ♦ fool's errand ♦ Slipslop ♦ unprofitable, Unprofited ♦ waste, wastefulness. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "profitless": Cancer ♦ WORMS. (references) |
| Etymologies containing "profitless": Unprofited. (references) |
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit |  | The myth of profitless prosperity. Credit: Library of Congress. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| Author | Quotation |
B.c. Forbes | The most profitless thing to manufacture is excuses. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | WORMS'-:MEAT:, n. The finished product of which we are the raw material. The contents of the Taj Mahal, the Tombeau Napoleon and the Granitarium. Worms'-meat is usually outlasted by the structure that houses it, but "this too must pass away." Probably the silliest work in which a human being can engage is construction of a tomb for himself. The solemn purpose cannot dignify, but only accentuates by contrast the foreknown futility. Ambitious fool! so mad to be a show! How profitless the labor you bestow Upon a dwelling whose magnificence The tenant neither can admire nor know. Build deep, build high, build massive as you can, The wanton grass-roots will defeat the plan By shouldering asunder all the stones In what to you would be a moment's span. Time to the dead so all unreckoned flies That when your marble is all dust, arise, If wakened, stretch your limbs and yawn -- You'll think you scarcely can have closed your eyes. What though of all man's works your tomb alone Should stand till Time himself be overthrown? Would it advantage you to dwell therein Forever as a stain upon a stone? Joel Huck |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| "Profitless" is generally used as an adjective (general or positive) -- approximately 100.00% of the time. "Profitless" is used about 13 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Adjective (general or positive) | 100% | 13 | 97,576 |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| Language | Translations for "profitless"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arabic | دون فائدة (profitlessly). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chinese | 效益. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
French | sans profit (profitlessly). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
German | profitlos. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Greek | άνευ κέρδουσ, ανωφελήσ (futile, in vain, ineffective, unavailing, useless, vain). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Korean | 무익한 (futile, useless). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Manx | neuvondeishagh (disadvantageous, unfavourable), gyn vondeish, gyn cosney (unearned). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pig Latin | ofitlesspray nefolositor (castaway, Duff, futile, idle, of no avail, piddling, unfit, unsuitable, useless, waste). (various references) neunosan (unfruitful, ungainly, unprofitable), bez zarade, beskoristan (otiose, unnecessary, unprofitable, useless, worthless). (various references) no rentable (unprofitable), inútil (empty, good for nothing, helpless, naught, needless, no go, of no avail, of no use, pointless, purposeless, unavailing, unfit, unprofitable, unserviceable, unsuccessful, unsuitable, useless, vain, waste, wasted), improductivo (idle, non-producing, non-yielding, unproductive, unprofitable). (various references) yararsız (bootless, footless, gainless, inexpedient, invalid, it's no use, no good, of no avail, otiose, pointless, unobliging, unserviceable, useless), kârsız (gainless, unprofitable, unremunerative), faydasız (barren, bootless, fruitless, ineffectual, inefficacious, it's no go, it's no use, no good, nugatory, unavailing, unobliging, unprofitable, unusable, useless, vain, void). (various references) невигідний (disadvantageous), безкорисний (begging, good for nothing). (various references) vô ích không có lãi, không có lợi (inexpedient, unbeneficial, unprofitable, unremunerative). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Misspellings | |
"Profitless" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Praxiteles. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| Words rhyming with "profitless" (pronounced 'Prof"it*less'): Accentless, Actionless, Actless, Afflictionless, Ageless, Aidless, Aimless, Airless, Aisless, Ambitionless, Anchorless, Answerless, Approachless, Apronless, Armless, Artless, Assistless, Authorless, Avoidless, Awless, Awnless, Backless, Badgeless, Barkless, Baseless, Bashless, Bateless, Beaconless, Beamless, Beardless, Beautiless, Beneficeless, Birthless, Bitless, Blameless, Blemishless, Bless, Blissless, Bloodless, Bloomless, Blossomless, Blotless, Blushless, Boastless, Bodiless, Boneless, Bonnetless, Bookless, Bootless, Boteless. (additional references) |
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "e-f-i-l-o-p-r-s-s-t" | |
-2 letters: estriols, firepots, florists, flossier, pieforts, pistoles, poitrels, portless, postfire, presifts, profiles, prosiest, prosties, reposits, resplits, riftless, ripostes, spoilers, stiflers, trefoils, triposes. | |
-3 letters: esprits, estriol, filters, firepot, florets, florist, flossie, forests, forties, fosters, lifters, lispers, listers, lofters, loftier, loiters, lorises, ostlers, persist, petrols, piefort, pilfers, piolets, pistole, pistols, plessor, poisers, poitrel, politer, posters. | |
| Words containing the letters "e-f-i-l-o-p-r-s-s-t" | |
+1 letter: shoplifters. | |
+3 letters: pestiferously. | |
+4 letters: profitableness. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Images: Photo Album | 5. Quotations: Familiar 6. Quotations: Non-fiction 7. Usage Frequency 8. Translations: Modern | 9. Derivations 10. Rhymes 11. Anagrams 12. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
