What's the difference between fruitless and vain?

Fruitless


Definition:

  • (a.) Lacking, or not bearing, fruit; barren; destitute of offspring; as, a fruitless tree or shrub; a fruitless marriage.
  • (a.) Productive of no advantage or good effect; vain; idle; useless; unprofitable; as, a fruitless attempt; a fruitless controversy.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) It is generally agreed upon that ERT is fruitless in the patient with severe head trauma or when vital signs were absent at the scene of the injury.
  • (2) Gone would be the system of semi-competition, of backroom bundles that force you to pay for channels and programming you wouldn't watch – even if it was the only thing available, like when you turn off the TV after a long, fruitless Netflix scroll.
  • (3) Her support dissipated in a fruitless search for a site.
  • (4) Both sides, wearied by decades of fruitless diplomacy, cautioned that an initial meeting – scheduled for the "next week or so" in Washington, according to Kerry – will not automatically lead to productive negotiations.
  • (5) That will not be the case this week when trade ministers from 159 countries meet in Bali in the hopes of salvaging something from 12 years of so far fruitless talks.
  • (6) Once when I was fruitlessly engaged on this bag non-opening, someone came up to me, and I barked: “I can do it myself thank you.” He was just collecting the umbrella he’d left behind.
  • (7) "Gnnmph, I can't 'ave it 'ere, I 'aven't 'ad my enema," wails a labouring housewife, straining fruitlessly on a communal tenement bog as horrified neighbours look on in their rollers.
  • (8) We seem to spend time protesting loudly and fruitlessly about the actions of our enemies – whom we are actually unable to influence – while standing by as our so-called “friends” get away with officially sanctioned crimes, torture and injustice.
  • (9) Smears made from purulent discharges do not always show the organism and microbiological culture may likewise prove fruitless.
  • (10) Duped by Mexico’s mafia: Guatemalan couple fall victim to border gang Read more After four years of fruitless appeals she entered the church on 7 August to escape a final deportation order that took effect the following day.
  • (11) But I can help you.” “We can help you shave off a couple years of fruitless effort,” Susie added.
  • (12) In a statement that contained little contrition for putting investors, staff and customers through a fruitless two weeks, Duch-Pedersen insisted that shareholders were continuing to "express their overwhelming support for the standalone G4S business and its management".
  • (13) Efforts at reducing demand have been similarly fruitless.
  • (14) The project faces huge opposition from Greenpeace and other environmental groups that hoped the company would end its search for oil, which has so far been fruitless.
  • (15) The petitions, banners, town hall meetings and political visits proved to be fruitless.
  • (16) To date fruitless efforts have been carried out to find a cryoprotectant for the spermatozoa membranes and glycerol still continues to be used despite its harmful effects to the membranes.
  • (17) And I sort of thought I'd bought my freedom in that way") and hitchhiked through Europe, looking, fruitlessly, for an idea of what to do.
  • (18) He said there had been “more than 300 violations” of the truce since last weekend, when it was supposed to begin, and warned that the EU is “reaching a point when further diplomatic efforts will be fruitless unless credibly backed up by further action”.
  • (19) A 41-year-old man suffering from an actinomyces infection of the cornea of his right eye, was treated unsuccessfully with antibiotics especially intensive local and systematic therapy with penicillin, paracentesis of the anterior chamber with penicillin irrigation, and cautery of the corneal ulcer were fruitless.
  • (20) Much of the money has been squandered on a fruitless search for cancer "cures."

Vain


Definition:

  • (superl.) Having no real substance, value, or importance; empty; void; worthless; unsatisfying.
  • (superl.) Destitute of forge or efficacy; effecting no purpose; fruitless; ineffectual; as, vain toil; a vain attempt.
  • (superl.) Proud of petty things, or of trifling attainments; having a high opinion of one's own accomplishments with slight reason; conceited; puffed up; inflated.
  • (superl.) Showy; ostentatious.
  • (n.) Vanity; emptiness; -- now used only in the phrase in vain.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) For example, if we purchase new examination equipment without any consideration or if we decide what type of equipment to introduce according to the common advice of the purchase committee of the hospital or the medical school, then we cannot design an ideal system of laboratory examinations and are forced to invest a large sum of money in vain.
  • (2) The George Bush campaign juggernaut hit the first serious pothole of its cash-fuelled drive to the presidency yesterday, as the Texas governor tried in vain to fend off questions about whether he had used cocaine as a young man.
  • (3) Full set list, show one (thanks to princevault.com ) Take Me With U (acoustic) Raspberry Beret (acoustic) U Got The Look (acoustic) Instrumental jam (acoustic) Train In Vain (acoustic) Q & A (1) incl.
  • (4) VaIN rarely is an isolated lesion and frequently is preceded by, or coexists with, other types of premalignant genital squamous neoplasia.
  • (5) He’s the kind of self-styled intellectual journalist in politics who caused so much trouble in 20th century politics, not a bad man, decent enough in his way, but not as smart as he thinks he is, vain with it.
  • (6) For long spells, West Ham searched in vain for inspiration as they tried to find a way past Newcastle United’s defence and end a run of three matches without a win.
  • (7) Further, in a vain attempt for a boost in the Hoosier State, Cruz unveiled former rival Carly Fiorina as his running mate if he receives the nomination and was able to cajole the state’s sitting governor, Mike Pence, into an endorsement.
  • (8) The next few days may well determine whether, this time, such loyalty will be in vain; but, while yearning for a clarion call and what was described as "vision" in this paper's leading article yesterday, I need to pose some pretty stark questions to Guardian readers.
  • (9) He aims to put his newspapers, including the Times and the Sun, behind a paywall, something described by the co-founder of Twitter, Biz Stone, as a vain attempt to "put the genie back in the bottle".
  • (10) In vain I argued that Robin Day seemed to wear the same jacket and shirt every week, and fled back to radio."
  • (11) Now I can feel that my son's blood wasn't totally lost in vain.
  • (12) In vain will Cameron plead that blame should lie with Brown and his Labour colleagues.
  • (13) At a media day held to mark the completion of the training and arranged before the tragedy, soldier after soldier came forward to insist that, though they were apprehensive, they were determined to do a good job, partly to make sure that their six colleagues had not died in vain.
  • (14) He somehow scrambled to deuce and delighted in forcing Dimitrov to chase in vain from one side of the court to the other to go 6-5 up.
  • (15) Assessment of patients between 9 and 99 (mean 55) months after partial colpectomy for VAIN showed no recurrence of disease in ten patients (83%).
  • (16) The scientific establishment struggled in vain to produce evidence that would reassure the public.
  • (17) No grieving wants to go through that, and our city doesn’t want to go through that.” Murphy said an accelerated program to equip Baltimore police officers with body cameras would mean Gray “did not die in vain”.
  • (18) His mother has said she tried in vain to get help for him.
  • (19) But he flailed in vain as the police officers grabbed him, one forcing his T-shirt roughly up over his head as three or four others laid in with their wooden batons, dragging and pushing him to a line of waiting Land Cruisers and more helmeted cops.
  • (20) As Steve spends half his money trying in vain to keep a scowl off Michelle's face and the rest comfort eating, Liz stumped up half the cash.

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