ineffective

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If these drugs are ineffective, applying a local anesthetic (such as cocaine) to the back of the throat may provide temporary relief.

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Definitions (7)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (2)

  1. adjective Not producing an intended effect; ineffectual: an ineffective plea.
  2. adjective Inadequate; incompetent: an ineffective teacher.

Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (1)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (1)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (3)

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Examples (50)

  • RI is awash with political narcissists who are corrupt, ineffective, and morally bankrupt. —  WLNE - News
  • The Obama campaign will never be able to get back the time they have lost with their scattershot, ineffective, and ultimately self defeating attacks on Palin. —  Right Wing Nut House
  • Mastenbrook provided some initial workarounds to help users protect themselves that turned out to be ineffective, and then posted a more complex workaround that was both problematic for most users to implement, and sometimes resulted in system problems. —  TidBITS: Mac News for the Rest of Us
  • The current raids and strategy used by ICE has proved to be ineffective, as these practices cause fear in immigrant communities.
  • No, it's that they weren't sufficiently slavishly devoted to their tired, worn-out, ineffective, and out-of-touch ideas. —  Musing's musings
 

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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (1)

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. = French ineffectif = Portuguese ineffectivo; as in- + effective.
 

Pronunciations
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/ɪnɛˈfɛktɪv/
by American Heritage

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