It's Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 20th.

Today's word is futile, also pronounced futile, and spelled F-U-T-I-L-E.

Futil is an adjective, an effort action or emotion described as futile has no result or effect and therefore serves no useful purpose.

Here's the word used in a sentence from Rolling Stone by Cassidy George.

When Resolve is wearing thin and hoarding, Cassidy George.

When Resolve is wearing thin and hope feels futile, sometimes the only thing left to do is laugh.

Attempts to pinpoint the first use of the phrase resistance is futile

may ultimately be futile, that is pointless or in vain,

but that hasn't stopped folks from trying.

Popular in movies and television series, from Star Trek to Star Gate,

Veronica Mars to Napoleon Dynamite, the slogan is often uttered by an antagonist who wants to make it clear in no uncertain terms that they will be the one to prevail in the on-screen struggle.

Some people point to a 1976 episode of Dr. Who, in which a character called The Master says

resistance is futile now.

While others prefer the quote without the now, holding up a

1977 episode of Space 1999 as being the first to feature it.

However, author Randall Garrett had both shows beat in his 1961 short story, The Hyst Treason, in which a character says

not if they can prove that resistance is futile. Despite its clear importance to futuristic science fiction, the word

futile has ancient roots. It comes from the Latin adjective futilise, which was used to describe things that are brittle or

fragile and by extension serve no purpose. These meanings survive in the English word futile,

which denotes ineffectiveness.

With your word of the day, I'm Peter Sakalowski.

Visit Marion Webster.

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