aimless

adjective

aim·​less ˈām-ləs How to pronounce aimless (audio)
: without aim or purpose : not having a goal or purpose
… we would not get to sit on the verandah drinking cold beer at the end of the day, starting up aimless conversations with other couples …Alexandra Kennedy
Some years, you feel that nothing much is being made except plotless tales about aimless young people wasting time …Robin Buss
The wind blew, the shad were nowhere to be found, even steady use of our fish locator and aimless trolling around the lakes failed to provoke a single strike.Steve Davis
aimlessly adverb
… whenever they had the chance, he and Zave would climb the steep streets and walk aimlessly beneath the arching trees, looking at the mansions. James A. Michener
aimlessness noun
… my friends are all prematurely successful in their worthwhile, absorbing careers, and I am frightening my parents and maybe even myself with my aimlessness. Daphne Uviller

Examples of aimless in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Wallack and others have proposed a large music festival during the third week of spring break — when aimless and unruly crowds tend to reach their climax — with the hope that attendees will disperse the loitering mobs. David Fischer, Fortune, 5 Mar. 2024 Still, even outside of those few crucial pages, the plot is infused with driving, aimless and otherwise. Emma Copley Eisenberg, The Atlantic, 23 Jan. 2024 Imogene — now a spoiled and aimless adult — hangs out with the billionaire Collier family, who once employed her mother. Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post, 22 Jan. 2024 In the following years, Coppola had the kind of aimless early adulthood particular to the offspring of the Hollywood élite. Rachel Syme, The New Yorker, 22 Jan. 2024 But a few months later, at his father’s wedding to Camilla (Olivia Williams), Harry remains as angry, bitter and aimless as ever, shooting daggers at the couple on the altar. Meredith Blake, Los Angeles Times, 16 Dec. 2023 The film’s official synopsis indicates the film is set in Florida the day after Christmas and centers on Billy 5000, an aimless teenager and delivery driver. Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Jan. 2024 His mother sent the aimless youth to a chalet in the Austrian Alps which served as a combination university and sanatorium. Daniel Immerwahr, The New Yorker, 8 Jan. 2024 Yet a sense of loneliness gradually dawns on him as a consequence of the aimless pleasures and social isolation. Gregory M. Collins, National Review, 27 Dec. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'aimless.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1583, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of aimless was in 1583

Dictionary Entries Near aimless

Cite this Entry

“Aimless.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aimless. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

aimless

adjective
aim·​less
ˈām-ləs
: lacking a goal or purpose
aimless wandering
aimlessly adverb
aimlessness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on aimless

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!