aimlessly

[ eym-lis-lee ]

adverb

1. without purpose or intent:

   She wandered aimlessly among the empty houses, telling herself sad stories about all the people who weren’t there.

   There was no actual work to do, so I spent most of my workday browsing aimlessly through social media.

Word History and Origins

Origin of aimlessly¹

aimless ( def ) + -ly

Example Sentences

He drove alone to a Costco, aimlessly walking the aisles and tasting the food samples.

From Los Angeles Times

I didn’t need to drive around aimlessly and ask people whether they support Kamala Harris or Donald Trump to know that Latinos are as diverse in their political opinions as non-Latinos, if not more so.

From Los Angeles Times

Two minutes later, Swaibu held a needlessly high line, chased back aimlessly and allowed Maidenhead to make it 4-2.

From BBC

From the moment she strode out flashing her high-wattage smile, Harris commanded the stage with a purpose and passion that eluded her the last time she ran, aimlessly and unsuccessfully, for the White House.

From Los Angeles Times

Rogers said it’s helpful to explain what you are doing when you do have a phone in hand around your child so they understand you are not aimlessly scrolling through sites like Instagram.

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• frantically
• indiscriminately
• instinctively
• madly
• wildly