Search the Dictionary

Useless; unprofitable. [Obs.] Bacon.

Uselessness; the quality of being unprofitable; unprofitableness; as, the inutility of vain speculations and visionary projects.

Pecuniarily embarrassed through owning much unprofitable land. [Colloq.]

Yielding lucre; gainful; profitable; making increase of money or goods; as, a lucrative business or office. The trade of merchandise being the most lucrative, may bear usury at a good rate. Bacon.

Gainful; profitable. [Obs.] Boyle.

A vain, unprofitable discourse or inquiry. [R.]

Any unprofitable science. [Obs.]

Affording profitable returns; lucrative; as, a money-making business.

Hence, to make or secure suitable return for expense or trouble; to be remunerative or profitable; to be worth the effort or pains required; as, it will pay to ride; it will pay to wait; politeness always pays. To pay for. (a) To make amends for; to atone for; as, men often pay for their mistakes with loss of property…

To take profit of; to make profitable. [Obs.] Sylvester.

To plan; to scheme; to devise; to contrive secretly. "Plotting an unprofitable crime." Dryden. "Plotting now the fall of others." Milton

Of the nature of a plum; desirable; profitable; advantageous. [Colloq.] "For the sake of getting something plummy." G. Eliot.

s philosophy holds all inquiry into causes, both efficient and final, to be useless and unprofitable.

Producing, or able to produce, in large measure; fertile; profitable. -- Pro*duc"tive*ly, adv. -- Pro*duc"tive*ness, n.

Profitable; advantageous; useful. [Obs.] Harvey.

Without profit; unprofitable. Shak.

and curious information which he had picked up during many months of desultory, but not unprofitable, study. Macaulay. Quantity of estate (Law), its time of continuance, or degree of interest, as in fee, for life, or for years. Wharton (Law Dict. ) -- Quantity of matter, in a body, its mass, as determined by its weight…

Barren; unprofitable. See Rent seck, under Rent.

business, for an association, a public body, or an individual. That which is most of all profitable is acquaintance with the secretaries, and employed men of ambassadors. Bacon.

common. Swift. Wit itself, if stale is less pleasing. Grew. How weary, stale flat, and unprofitable Seem to me all the uses of this world! Shak. Stale affidavit (Law), an affidavit held above a year. Craig. -- Stale demand (Law), a claim or demand which has not been pressed or demanded for a long time.…