adj
Meaning 1
Unsuccessful, failed.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: idiomatic
Examples
- Their efforts were in vain and he succumbed to his injuries.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Phrase guide
in vain
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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adv
Meaning 2
Without success or a result; ending in failure.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: idiomatic
Examples
- 19th c., Friedrich Nietzsche On the mountains of truth you can never climb in vain.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adv
Meaning 3
In a disrespectful manner, without honoring the proper meaning; insincerely or without proper respect.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: idiomatic
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
adverb
Meaning 4
to no avail
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
- he looked for her in vain
- the city fathers tried vainly to find a solution
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: vainly
Antonyms: none provided
History
Etymology
No etymology was provided for this word.
Across languages
Translations
145 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Chinese Mandarin: 徒勞的 /徒劳的 (túláo de) — without success
- Esperanto: sensolva — without success
- Esperanto: vana — without success
- Finnish: turha — without success
- Indonesian: sia-sia — without success
- Eastern Mari: арам (aram) — without success
- Polish: daremny — without success
- Polish: bezskuteczny — without success
- Portuguese: em vão — without success
- Afrikaans: tevergeefs — without success
- Afrikaans: omsons — without success
- Afrikaans: vergeefs — without success
- Afrikaans: verniet — without success
- Afrikaans: ydellik — without success
- Arabic: عَبَثًا (ʕabaṯan) — without success
- Arabic: سُدًى (sudan) — without success
- Armenian: զուր (zur) — without success
- Armenian: իզուր (izur) — without success
- Belarusian: дарэ́мна (darémna) — without success
- Belarusian: дарма́ (darmá) — without success
- Belarusian: ма́рна (márna) — without success
- Bulgarian: напра́зно (naprázno) — without success
- Bulgarian: всу́е (vsúe) — without success
- Bulgarian: напу́сто (napústo) — without success
- Catalan: en va — without success
- Chinese Mandarin: 徒然 (túrán) — without success
- Chinese Mandarin: 白白 (báibái) — without success
- Chinese Mandarin: 無益 /无益 (wúyì) — without success
- Chinese Mandarin: 徒勞 /徒劳 (túláo) — without success
- Chinook Jargon: k'ax̣chi — without success
- Czech: neúspěšně — without success
- Danish: forgæves — without success
- Dutch: tevergeefs — without success
- Dutch: vergeefs — without success
- Esperanto: sensolve — without success
- Esperanto: vane — without success
- Finnish: turhaan — without success
- Finnish: tarpeettomasti — without success
- Finnish: tarpeetta — without success
- French: en vain — without success
- French: inutilement — without success
- Galician: en balde — without success
- Galician: en van — without success
- German: vergebens — without success
- German: vergeblich — without success
- German: umsonst — without success
- Pennsylvania German: umsunscht — without success
- Pennsylvania German: vergebens — without success
- Pennsylvania German: vergeblich — without success
- Pennsylvania German: vergewens — without success
- Greek: μάταια (mátaia) — without success
- Greek: του κάκου (tou kákou) — without success
- Greek: εις μάτην (eis mátin) — without success
- Greek: επί ματαίω (epí mataío) — without success
- Ancient Greek: μάτην (mátēn) — without success
- Ancient Greek: ἅλιον (hálion) — without success
- Ancient Greek: μάψ (máps) — without success
- Hungarian: hiába — without success
- Hungarian: hasztalan — without success
- Hungarian: hasztalanul — without success
- Icelandic: til einskis — without success
- Icelandic: árangurslaus — without success
- Icelandic: unnið fyrir gýg — without success
- Ingrian: turhaa — without success
- Italian: invano — without success
- Japanese: 無益の (mueki no) — without success
- Kazakh: бекер (beker) — without success
- Korean: 헛되이 (heotdoei) — without success
- Central Kurdish: باداوە (badawe) — without success
- Latin: in cassum — without success
- Latin: futtile — without success
- Latin: frustrā — without success
- Latin: in vānum — without success
- Malayalam: വൃഥാ (vr̥thā) — without success
- Malayalam: വെറുതെ (veṟute) — without success
- Manchu: ᠮᡝᡴᡝᠯᡝ (mekele) — without success
- Māori: parau — without success
- Māori: paraurehe — without success
- Māori: huakore — without success
- Eastern Mari: арамеш (arameš) — without success
- Eastern Mari: арамлан (aramlan) — without success
- Navajo: chʼééh — without success
- Norwegian Bokmål: forgjeves — without success
- Norwegian Bokmål: fånyttes — without success
- Norwegian Nynorsk: forgjeves — without success
- Old English: on īdel — without success
- Old English: hōlinga — without success
- Plautdietsch: vejäfs — without success
- Polish: daremnie — without success
- Polish: na darmo — without success
- Polish: na próżno — without success
- Polish: bezskutecznie — without success
- Polish: na marne — without success
- Portuguese: inutilmente — without success
- Portuguese: debalde — without success
- Romanian: degeaba — without success
- Romanian: în zadar — without success
- Russian: напра́сно (naprásno) — without success
- Russian: зря (zrja) — without success
- Russian: да́ром (dárom) — without success
- Russian: тще́тно (tščétno) — without success
- Russian: впусту́ю (vpustúju) — without success
- Russian: всу́е (vsúje) — without success
- Russian: безуспе́шно (bezuspéšno) — without success
- Russian: по́пусту (pópustu) — without success
- Serbo-Croatian: ȕzalūd — without success
- Serbo-Croatian: ȕzalūdno — without success
- Slovene: zamàn — without success
- Spanish: en vano — without success
- Spanish: en balde — without success
- Spanish: inútilmente — without success
- Spanish: de balde — without success
- Spanish: de momio — without success
- Swedish: förgäves — without success
- Tagalog: lihing — without success
- Thai: อย่างสูญเปล่า — without success
- Thai: โดยสูญเปล่า — without success
- Turkish: boşuna — without success
- Ukrainian: ма́рно (márno) — without success
- Ukrainian: даре́мно (darémno) — without success
- Ukrainian: дарма́ (darmá) — without success
- Uzbek: behuda — without success
- Vietnamese: hoài — without success
- Yiddish: אומזיסט (umzíst) — without success
- Yiddish: אומזיסט־אומנישט (umzíst-umnísht) — without success
- Chinese Mandarin: 褻瀆地 /亵渎地 (xièdú de) — disrespectful manner
- Finnish: turhaan — disrespectful manner
- French: à la légère — disrespectful manner
- Galician: en van — disrespectful manner
- German: eitel — disrespectful manner
- German: lästerlich — disrespectful manner
- German: missbräuchlich — disrespectful manner
- German: respektlos — disrespectful manner
- Ancient Greek: ἐπὶ ματαίῳ (epì mataíōi) — disrespectful manner
- Hungarian: hiába — disrespectful manner
- Hungarian: tiszteletlenül — disrespectful manner
- Hungarian: illetlenül — disrespectful manner
- Icelandic: í hégóma — disrespectful manner
- Italian: invano — disrespectful manner
- Italian: alla leggera — disrespectful manner
- Italian: disdicevolmente — disrespectful manner
- Polish: nadaremno — disrespectful manner
- Portuguese: em vão — disrespectful manner
- Spanish: a la ligera — disrespectful manner
- Tagalog: sa walang kabuluhan — disrespectful manner