earworm
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earworm
A melody or song that you cannot get out of your head and that you keep hearing or humming internally.
Seit ich das Lied im Radio gehört habe, habe ich einen schrecklichen Ohrwurm.
Ever since I heard the song on the radio, I've had a terrible earworm.
The word is made up of 'Ohr' (ear) and 'Wurm' (worm). This literal meaning fits both meanings: with the melody, it is a 'worm' that figuratively gets stuck in your ear. With the insect, the name is based on the old superstition that it crawls into ears.
Ich bekomme diese Melodie nicht mehr aus dem Kopf, ein echter Ohrwurm!
I can't get this melody out of my head—such a real earworm!
You can easily recognize which meaning is intended from the context. If it is about music, the radio, or a song, it refers to the melody. If you are talking about the garden, insects, or nature, it refers to the animal.
Dieses Lied aus der Werbung ist ein totaler Ohrwurm.
This song from the advertisement is a total earworm.
When referring to the melody, the verbs 'haben' (to have) or 'bekommen' (to get) are usually used. So you can possess or receive an Ohrwurm like a thing.
Ich habe seit gestern einen Ohrwurm von diesem Popsong.
I've had an earworm from this pop song since yesterday.
song
'das Lied' and 'der Ohrwurm' can both have to do with music and singing. 'das Lied' is the piece of music itself, usually with lyrics. 'der Ohrwurm' is a melody or song that you keep hearing in your head and do not forget easily. So a song can become an earworm, but not every song is an earworm. Learners may confuse the words because an earworm is often also a song. The important thing is the perspective: 'Lied' names the piece of music, while 'Ohrwurm' describes its effect in your head.
Seit dem Konzert habe ich diesen Ohrwurm und summe die Melodie den ganzen Tag.
Since the concert, I've had this earworm and have been humming the melody all day.
Im Radio läuft gerade ein altes Lied, das meine Mutter sehr mag.
An old song that my mother really likes is playing on the radio right now.