Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Keep "futility" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "futility" intact in the sentence you are editing.
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
After choosing a replacement for "futility", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "futility" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
12 total sentences available.
The proof of the futility of harsh drug laws is this: in the country that has come down the hardest on drugs and drug users, spending billions of dollars in a decades-long war on drugs, there have never been so many drug addicts.
Source: tatoeba (3678967)
Tom was overcome with a sense of futility.
Source: tatoeba (8351687)
This is the worst snowstorm to hit England in 18 years. And for some the journey into work became an exercise in futility.
Source: tatoeba (12188776)
an exercise of futility
Source: wiktionary
Showing 4 of 12 available sentences.
Closest matches include absurdity, absurdity, aimlessness, bankruptcy, big deal.
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.