Synonyms:
- be found wanting,
- be unsuccessful,
- beat the air,
- bootless errand,
- come to grief,
- fail,
- fail of success,
- flunk,
- flunk out,
- go bankrupt,
- labor of Sisyphus,
- lash the waves,
- lose,
- lost,
- milk the ram,
- not come off,
- not pass,
- not work,
- snipe hunt,
- sow the sand,
- tilt at windmills,
- waste of breath,
- waste of labor,
- waste of time,
- wild-goose chase,
- work of Penelope