uselessness; futility; in vain
Literary or formal word for something being pointless or without effect. Often used in the adverbial form 徒爾に (とじに) meaning 'in vain' or 'to no purpose'. Rare in everyday conversation.
His efforts ended in vain.
We should avoid futile arguments.
A Sino-Japanese compound of 徒 (futility, in vain) and 爾 (a classical Chinese particle used adverbially). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the word is a literary borrowing from classical Chinese.