characterless

English

Etymology tree

Ancient Greek χαράσσω (kharássō)

Proto-Indo-European *-tḗr

Ancient Greek -τήρ (-tḗr)

Ancient Greek χαρακτήρ (kharaktḗr)der.

Latin charactērder.

Old French caracterebor.

Middle English caracter

English character

Proto-Indo-European *lewh₁-

Proto-Indo-European *lewHs-der.

Proto-Germanic *leusaną

Proto-Germanic *lausaz

Proto-Germanic *-lausaz

Proto-West Germanic *-laus

Old English -lēas

Middle English -les

English -less

English characterless

characterless (comparative more characterless, superlative most characterless)

Having no distinguishing character or quality.
- 1855, William Cooper Nell, Harriet Beecher Stowe, The Colored Patriots of the American Revolution:
  The great mass of American citizens estimate us, as being a characterless and purposeless people ; and hence we hold up our heads, if at all, against the withering influence of a nation's scorn and contempt.
- 1944, Emily Carr, “Friction”, in The House of All Sorts:
  The House of All Sorts was new and characterless. It had not yet found itself—and an apartment house takes longer to find itself than do individual private houses.
- 2025 April 2, “Saluting Scotland's magnificent Inter 7?”, in RAIL, number 1032, page 55:
  In recent times, the track has been straightened out and a new, somewhat characterless, station has been built just to the east.
Lacking in or devoid of personality.
- 1897, Richard Marsh, The Beetle:
  The letter within was written in the same straggling, characterless caligraphy, — I should have said, had I been asked offhand, that the whole thing was the composition of a servant girl.
- 1930, Norman Lindsay, Redheap, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, →OCLC, page 16:
  It was her virtue to be tall, pale, characterless and effaced by partial speechlessness.

having no distinguishing character or quality