"Then this will be a fruitless exercise," Paris said.

Yet all the signs were that this was going to be a fruitless exercise.

Trying to establish a direct correlation between the two seems a fruitless exercise.

He could always bring the guy in for questioning, but he knew that would be a fruitless exercise.

Whole days were spent in this harassing, fruitless exercise.

Yes, I think it was a fruitless exercise, but it didn't take me very long to realize that.

I have spent too many years wasting my time in that fruitless exercise.

But preserving a declining species is a fruitless exercise.

We all need to accept it has proved to be a fruitless exercise.

At the same time she realized it would have been a fruitless exercise.