Meaning & use
needless
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Meanings
adjectivebefore a noun
Not needed and avoidable if more care had been taken.
Grammar: Used before a noun: needless waste. Not usually after a verb.
Patterns
- needless + noun
- needless to say
The accident was caused by needless risk-taking.
The report criticized the needless spending of public money.
adjectivefixed phrase
Used in the phrase 'needless to say' to mean that what follows is obvious.
Grammar: Always in the phrase 'needless to say', often at the start of a sentence.
Patterns
- needless to say
Needless to say, we were disappointed when the trip was canceled.
He forgot his passport, needless to say, and missed the flight.
Word forms
| comparative | more needless |
|---|---|
| superlative | most needless |
Common combinations
- needless to say
- Needless to say, the party was a great success.
- needless waste
- The broken pipe caused needless waste of water.
- needless suffering
- The new law aims to prevent needless suffering.
- needless risk
- Climbing without a helmet is a needless risk.
Synonyms and how they differ
- unnecessary
- Unnecessary is more neutral and common in everyday speech; needless often suggests blame or carelessness.
- avoidable
- Avoidable focuses on the possibility of prevention; needless emphasizes that something was not needed at all.
Opposites
Word family
- needlessly adverb
- In a way that is not needed: needlessly expensive.
- needlessness noun
- The quality of being unnecessary.
Commonly confused: needless or needle? needless or needleless?
needless vs needle
Needle is a thin pointed tool; needless means not necessary.
needless vs needleless
Needleless means without a needle (e.g., a needleless syringe); needless means unnecessary.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence.
Choose one answer.
Option 0 correctly uses 'needless' as an adjective before a noun or after a linking verb. Option 1 wrongly inserts 'to say' in the middle of the sentence; the phrase 'needless to say' is a fixed adverbial phrase. Options 2 and 3 use incorrect prepositions.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “needless”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.