futilely
futilely — 副詞
1. describes an action that is done with effort but produces no useful result or ou
徒勞地
行動無效、毫無成果地
describes an action that is done with effort but produces no useful result or outcome
Alessia futilely searched for her passport in the dark bedroom as the taxi waited outside.
Alessia 在漆黑的臥室裡徒勞地尋找遺失的護照，這時計程車已經在外面等著。
futilely + search for
The night-shift nurse futilely tried to calm the confused elderly patient after the power cut.
停電之後，那位夜班護士徒勞地想安撫困惑的年長病人。
futilely + try to + infinitive
Jiwoo and her neighbours futilely tried to stop a pipe leak before the plumber came.
Jiwoo 和鄰居們徒勞地想在水電工到來之前堵住水管漏水。
Paul futilely argued with the ticket inspector even though his travel card had clearly expired.
Paul 徒勞地和查票員爭論，即使他的交通卡顯然已經過期了。
The local football team futilely defended their goal against wave after wave of attacks.
當地的足球隊徒勞地防守球門，抵擋一波又一波的攻勢。
- vainly
very similar meaning, often interchangeable; 'vainly' can also carry a nuance of excessive pride
- uselessly
slightly more direct and informal; 'uselessly' can describe both the action and the person/thing doing it
- pointlessly
emphasises the lack of purpose or reason for the action
- effectively
the action produces the intended result
- successfully
the action achieves its goal
文法句型
futilely + verb (try, attempt, search, struggle, resist)
pre-verbal position (most common)
用法筆記
Futilely is most often placed immediately before the verb it modifies ('futilely tried', 'futilely searched'). It can also appear at the beginning of a clause for emphasis ('Futilely, they kept digging'). More common in narrative and formal writing than in everyday conversation.