boredom
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boredom
An unpleasant feeling of being unoccupied and inactive because there are no interesting things to do.
Am Sonntagnachmittag überkam ihn oft eine große Langeweile.
On Sunday afternoons, he was often overcome by great boredom.
The word 'Langeweile' (boredom) is made up of 'lang' (long) and 'Weile' (a while / a period of time). So it literally describes a time that feels very long because nothing interesting is happening.
Diese lange Weile ohne Beschäftigung war kaum auszuhalten.
This long stretch of time with nothing to do was almost unbearable.
'Langeweile' (boredom) is an abstract feeling and is often used without an article, especially in the fixed expression 'Langeweile haben' (to be bored).
Die Kinder haben im Urlaub nie Langeweile.
The children are never bored on vacation.
Common phrases are 'gegen die Langeweile ankämpfen' (to fight boredom), 'vor Langeweile sterben' (to die of boredom, an exaggeration), or that 'Langeweile aufkommt' (boredom sets in).
Als der Strom ausfiel, kam bei den Kindern schnell Langeweile auf.
When the power went out, the children quickly became bored.
The fixed expression 'aus Langeweile' (out of boredom) is used to give the reason for an often pointless or spontaneous action. The preposition 'aus' is fixed here.
Sie hat aus Langeweile angefangen, alle ihre Stifte nach Farben zu sortieren.
Out of boredom, she started sorting all her pens by color.
fun / joke
'der Spaß' and 'die Langeweile' are clear opposites. 'Spaß' describes something being enjoyable or pleasantly entertaining. 'Langeweile' describes the unpleasant feeling when nothing is interesting or you have nothing meaningful to do. In the same situation, you can therefore either have fun or feel boredom. 'Aus Langeweile' (out of boredom) also explains that someone does something only because they cannot think of anything better to do.
Wegen des schlechten Wetters kommt bei den Kindern schnell Langeweile auf.
Because of the bad weather, the children quickly start to get bored.
Beim Kochen mit Freunden hatten wir vor dem Wochenende viel Spaß.
Cooking with friends before the weekend was a lot of fun.