rudderless

[ ruhd-er-lis ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

adjective

(of a boat, ship, or aircraft) lacking a rudder, the device or structure used to change direction and steer:
I love the story of Columba, a priest in sixth-century Ireland, who got into a rudderless boat and let God and providence take him where he was meant to be.
lacking purpose, leadership, moral principles, or anything else that might provide direction; aimless:
The people are drifting and rudderless, without a vision to unify and motivate them and without a shared set of values.

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Word History and Origins

Origin of rudderless¹

rudder ( def ) + -less ( def )

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Their children seem rudderless, but they approach the world with more dexterity.

From

For the rudderless and lost, whether due to ineptitude or deep grief, the office can be an orderly refuge.

From

In private meetings and at public events, elected Democrats appear leaderless, rudderless and divided.

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The bloc is beginning to feel rudderless, with the rise of more autocratic, Russia-sympathising leaders in Hungary, Slovakia and Romania and French and German focus weakened and distracted.

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But behind the complex political wrangling, Europe’s most powerful economy has been left rudderless, at a time when economic growth has stalled and EU leaders are nervous about an impending Trump presidency.

From

rudderhead rudderpost

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