unrestrained / ruthless
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unrestrained
Without any restraint or self-control; completely uninhibited. Can refer to both positive and negative expressions of emotion or actions.
Die Kinder tobten hemmungslos im Garten.
The children romped around unrestrainedly in the garden.
ruthless
Without moral concerns or scruples; ruthless and shameless.
Er hat seine Position hemmungslos ausgenutzt, um sich persönlich zu bereichern.
He ruthlessly exploited his position in order to enrich himself personally.
The word consists of the noun 'Hemmung' (inhibition, restraint, blockage) and the ending '-los' (-less), which means 'without'. So 'Hemmungslos' literally means 'without inhibitions'.
Nach dem Sieg feierte die Mannschaft hemmungslos bis in die Nacht.
After the victory, the team celebrated unrestrainedly into the night.
'Hemmungslos' (unrestrainedly/ruthlessly) is very often used as an adverb to describe a verb. It answers the question 'How?'. Typical examples are hemmungslos weinen (to cry uncontrollably), lachen (to laugh unrestrainedly), or essen (to eat without restraint).
Das Kind weinte hemmungslos, als sein Eis herunterfiel.
The child cried uncontrollably when his ice cream fell down.
In this meaning, the word often describes freely acting out one's feelings. The action itself is not necessarily negative. It is about the lack of self-control.
Sie lachte hemmungslos über den Witz.
She laughed unrestrainedly at the joke.
In this meaning, 'hemmungslos' (ruthless) has a strongly negative connotation. It is combined with verbs that describe morally wrong actions, such as 'ausnutzen' (to exploit), 'lügen' (to lie), or 'bereichern' (to enrich oneself).
Der Betrüger hat die Gutgläubigkeit der alten Dame hemmungslos ausgenutzt.
The fraudster ruthlessly exploited the old lady's gullibility.
shameless
Schamlos and hemmungslos can both describe intense, inappropriate behavior. Schamlos emphasizes a lack of shame and decency. Hemmungslos, by contrast, emphasizes that someone shows no restraint or self-control, and it can also be used with feelings that are not morally condemned.
Im Zorn beleidigte sie den neuen Kollegen hemmungslos.
In her anger, she insulted the new colleague without restraint.
Sie beleidigte den neuen Kollegen schamlos vor allen anderen.
She shamelessly insulted the new colleague in front of everyone else.
