Meaning & use
vain
Last updated
Meanings
adjectivecomparabledisapproving
Too proud of your own looks or abilities, and always wanting admiration for them.
Grammar: Usually describes a person; use it after be or before a noun: a vain man.
Patterns
- be vain about something
- vain about your looks
He was so vain that he checked his reflection in every shop window.
She isn't vain about her singing, even though she's very good.
The vain king ordered portraits of himself to be hung in every hall.
adjectivebefore a nounformal
Without success or a useful result, although much effort was made.
Grammar: Used before a noun in this sense: a vain attempt, a vain hope.
Patterns
- a vain attempt to do something
- a vain hope
They made a vain attempt to save the old barn.
It was a vain hope that the rain would stop before the match.
All our vain efforts to repair the engine ended at midnight.
phraseidiom
In vain means without achieving the wanted result.
Grammar: In vain follows the verb: they searched in vain.
Patterns
- try in vain to do something
- in vain
She waved in vain; the bus drove past.
We called for help, but in vain.
Word forms
| comparative | vainer |
|---|---|
| superlative | vainest |
Common combinations
- in vain
- He tried in vain to open the stuck window.
- vain attempt
- It was a vain attempt to win her back.
- vain hope
- They clung to a vain hope of rescue.
- vain and selfish
- The prince was vain and selfish.
- take someone's name in vain
- Don't take his name in vain; he is a respected man.
Synonyms and how they differ
- conceited
- Conceited stresses having too high an opinion of yourself in general, not just your looks.
- narcissistic
- Narcissistic is a stronger, more clinical word for self-obsession.
- proud
- Proud can be positive, while vain is almost always critical.
- futile
- Futile fits the 'without result' sense and suggests the act could never have worked.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: vain or vein? vain or vane?
vain vs vein
A vein is a blood vessel or a streak in rock; it sounds the same as vain but has nothing to do with pride.
vain vs vane
A vane is a flat blade that turns in the wind, such as a weather vane, and is another word that sounds identical to vain.
Practice
We searched everywhere for the missing keys, but ____.
Choose one answer.
'In vain' is the fixed phrase meaning without success. The other prepositions do not form any fixed expression with vain.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “vain”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.