vainly

V4A1I1N1L1Y4
US/ˈveɪnli/

adverb

In a vain pursuit; to no avail.

“She stared vainly at her reflection in the mirror.”

Similar
in vain
OriginMiddle English vaynly →
UncommonScrabble 12
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Meanings

adverbvainly (comparative vainlier or more vainly, superlative vainliest or most vainly)

comparative vainlier · comparative more vainly · superlative vainliest · superlative most vainly

  1. In a vain pursuit; to no avail.

    She searched vainly for her reflection in the shattered mirror.

  2. With a vain attitude; in a self-approving manner.

    She stared vainly at her reflection in the mirror.

Synonyms & antonyms

Similar
in vain

adverbto no avail

Similar
in vain
Also see
in vain

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Middle Englishvaynly
  2. Englishvainly

Inherited from Middle English vaynly, veynly, vaynely, veynely, equivalent to vain + -ly.

More words from Middle English

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Catalan vanament
  • vanamentin vain
Esperanto vane
  • vanein vain
Hungarian hiába
  • hiábain vain
Polish daremnie, na darmo
  • daremniein vain
  • na darmoin vain
  • na próżnoin vain
  • bezskuteczniein vain
Russian напрасно, тщетно
  • напрасно (naprasno)in vain
  • тщетно (tščetno)in vain
  • зря (zrja)in vain
Spanish vanamente
  • vanamentein vain
Turkish boşuna, beyhude
  • boşunain vain
  • beyhudein vain
  • boş yerein vain

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with vainly

mainlyplainly
All rhymes →

Anagrams

vanily
Cite this entry
APA

vainly. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/vainly

MLA

“vainly.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/vainly. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “vainly,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/vainly.

Source: vainly on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.