good-for-nothing
der Taugenichts, die Taugenichtse
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good-for-nothing
A derogatory term for a person considered lazy, unreliable, or incapable of doing anything useful.
Sein Vater beschimpfte ihn als Taugenichts, weil er jede Arbeit ablehnte und nur auf Kosten anderer lebte.
His father called him a good-for-nothing because he refused every job and lived at other people's expense.
| gender | masculine der |
|---|---|
| plural | die Taugenichtse |
| genitive | des Taugenichtses |
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | der Taugenichts | die Taugenichtse |
| accusative | den Taugenichts | die Taugenichtse |
| dative | dem Taugenichts | den Taugenichtsen |
| genitive | des Taugenichtses | der Taugenichtse |
The article changes with the case; it is shown in colour.
'Taugenichts' is made up of 'taugen' (to be good for) and 'nichts' (nothing). Literally, the word therefore refers to someone who is good for nothing; this formation explains its strongly derogatory character.
Im Roman wird der junge Taugenichts von den Dorfbewohnern nicht ernst genommen.
In the novel, the young good-for-nothing is not taken seriously by the villagers.
'Taugenichts' frequently occurs with verbs such as 'beschimpfen' (to insult), 'nennen' (to call), and 'bezeichnen' (to describe or refer to). With 'beschimpfen' and 'bezeichnen', the word follows 'als' (as): jemanden als Taugenichts bezeichnen (to call someone a good-for-nothing).
Die Nachbarn bezeichneten den jungen Mann hinter seinem Rücken als Taugenichts.
The neighbors referred to the young man as a good-for-nothing behind his back.
'Taugenichts' is a clear insult and is usually said about a person, rather than used neutrally for an activity or thing. The word occurs particularly in insults and judgmental narratives.
Du Taugenichts, warum hast du die wichtige Arbeit wieder nicht gemacht?
You good-for-nothing, why didn't you do the important work again?
