Is It Pointless or Futile?(名师答疑)

21 October 2022"pointless" and "futile?"的区别是什么?

这二者是同义词.

但有细微差别。

Pointless

"Pointless”是形容词,无意义或目的。

如我们能说:

It is pointless trying to talk to her... She will not listen.

Driving home right now is pointless because traffic is so heavy.

在游戏或竞赛中"pointless"表示没有得分。

Futile

"Futile”也是形容词。其意义是没有产生预期的效果。

我们工作某项目数小时,没有解决问题。我们所有的尝试都是徒劳的。

我们选举一个没有被提名的候选人是徒劳的。

总结:

两个词的主要区别是"futile"是有目的或经尝试目标不能达到。"pointless"是无目的或目标。

(参考原文如下)

what is the difference between the words "pointless" and "futile?"

These two words are often used as synonyms or words that can be used to mean the same thing.

But there are slight differences in usage.

Let's start with "pointless."

Pointless

"Pointless" is an adjective that means having no point, sense or purpose. To be "pointless" is to be without meaning or aim.

For example, we can say:

It is pointless trying to talk to her... She will not listen.

Driving home right now is pointless because traffic is so heavy.

In a game or competition, "pointless" can also mean without a point scored.

The game remained pointless at the end of the first half.

Futile

"Futile" is also an adjective. It means not able to produce a desired result. It can mean ineffective or useless.

We worked on the project for hours, but failed to fix the problem. All of our attempts were futile.

Voting for that candidate would be futile as he did not win the nominating election.

Summary

The main difference between these two words, is that with "futile" there is a goal or aim that can not be reached by the methods attempted. With "pointless" there is no goal or aim.