fighting in vain; despite a good fight
Used when someone's efforts or struggle end in failure or without the desired result, often in sports, competitions, or battles. Conveys respect for the effort despite the outcome.
He fought well but lost in the finals.
The team put up a good fight but was eliminated in the preliminaries.
健闘 is a noun meaning 'good fight' or 'strenuous effort', while 健闘むなしく is an adverbial expression meaning 'despite a good fight'.
空しい is an adjective meaning 'empty' or 'futile'; 健闘むなしく uses its adverbial form to modify the outcome of the effort.
Standard spelling using kana for むなしく; the most common written form.
Kanji spelling for むなしく; less common but still seen.
Alternate kanji for むなしく; rare and may be considered non-standard.
Compound of 健闘 (けんとう, 'good fight') and the adverbial form of 空しい (むなしい, 'futile'). The phrase literally means 'with a good fight being in vain'.