Meanings
noungood-for-nothing (plural good-for-nothings)
plural good-for-nothings
- A person of little worth or usefulness.
Americans might have taken some comfort from the fact that these critics also expressed similar misgivings about Rhodes Scholars coming from elsewhere. Isis, a student publication, lampooned Australians as good-for-nothings who badly needed education.
2010, Thomas J. Schaeper, Kathleen Schaeper, “Yanks and Brits”, in Rhodes Scholars, Oxford, and the Creation of an American Elite, New York, NY: Berghahn Books, →ISBN, page 23Synonyms: absolute zero, cipher, ne'er-do-well, no-account, no-good, no-mark, nonentity, absolute zero
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectiveUseless; worthless.
nounA person of little worth or usefulness.
More synonyms by meaning
adjectivewithout merit; of little or no value or use
nounan idle worthless person
Broader
Also see
bastardlyblatherskiteblownbumcullionlydogfuckerdo-nothingdosserduffingfaineantflaneurgoldbrickgood-for-naughtgoodlessgoof-offhand-sitteridlerlallygagloiter-sacklounge lizardmeritlessmoreporkne'er-do-wellnefariousno-accountno-countno goodno-goodnot worth a continentalnot worth a cressnot worth a cursenot worth a dimenot worth a plug nickelnot worth a whistlenot worth saltpooppricelessscrewyscummyslugabedsorrytruantunappreciateduselessvideophiliaworthless
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Translations
Ancient Greek μαστιγίας
- μαστιγίας (mastigías)person of little worth or usefulness
Catalan baliga-balaga, inútil
- baliga-balagauseless, worthless
- inútiluseless, worthless
- negatperson of little worth or usefulness
- inútilperson of little worth or usefulness
Chinese Mandarin 沒用 /没用, 一無是處 /一无是处
- 沒用 /没用 (méiyòng)useless, worthless
- 一無是處 /一无是处 (yīwúshìchù)person of little worth or usefulness
- 不稂不莠 (bùlángbùyǒu)person of little worth or usefulness
- 窩囊 /窝囊 (wōnang)person of little worth or usefulness
- 沒出息 /没出息 (méi chūxi)person of little worth or usefulness
- 玩兒鬧 /玩儿闹 (wánrnào)person of little worth or usefulness
- 不是東西 /不是东西 (bù shì dōngxi)person of little worth or usefulness
Czech budižkničemu, budižkničemu
- budižkničemuuseless, worthless
- budižkničemuperson of little worth or usefulness
Dutch nietsnut
- nietsnutperson of little worth or usefulness
Esperanto sentaŭga, sentaŭgulo
- sentaŭgauseless, worthless
- sentaŭguloperson of little worth or usefulness
Finnish kelvoton, nolla
- kelvotonuseless, worthless
- nollaperson of little worth or usefulness
- hulttioperson of little worth or usefulness
- hanttapuliperson of little worth or usefulness
- vätysperson of little worth or usefulness
- tyhjäntoimittajaperson of little worth or usefulness
French bon à rien, bon à rien
- bon à rienuseless, worthless
- bon à rienperson of little worth or usefulness
- vaurienperson of little worth or usefulness
- nullardperson of little worth or usefulness
German nutzlos, unbrauchbar
- nutzlosuseless, worthless
- unbrauchbaruseless, worthless
- untauglichuseless, worthless
- unnützuseless, worthless
- Taugenichtsperson of little worth or usefulness
- Nichtsnutzperson of little worth or usefulness
- Krattlerperson of little worth or usefulness
- Tunichtgutperson of little worth or usefulness
Greek χαραμοφάης
- χαραμοφάης (charamofáis)person of little worth or usefulness
Hebrew לא יוצלח, חסר תועלת
- לא יוצלח (Lo Yuts'lahh)person of little worth or usefulness
- חסר תועלת (chasar thoeleth)person of little worth or usefulness
Hindi काम का न काज का दुश्मन अनाज का
- काम का न काज का दुश्मन अनाज का (kām kā na kāj kā duśman anāj kā)useless, worthless
Hungarian haszontalan, hasznavehetetlen
- haszontalanuseless, worthless
- hasznavehetetlenuseless, worthless
- semmirekellőperson of little worth or usefulness
- haszontalanperson of little worth or usefulness
- mihasznaperson of little worth or usefulness
- jómadárperson of little worth or usefulness
- díszpintyperson of little worth or usefulness
- léhűtőperson of little worth or usefulness
- naplopóperson of little worth or usefulness
Icelandic ónytjungur, dugleysingi
- ónytjungurperson of little worth or usefulness
- dugleysingiperson of little worth or usefulness
Indonesian (orang) brengsek, sampah
- (orang) brengsekperson of little worth or usefulness
- sampahperson of little worth or usefulness
Irish fágtha, cúl-le-rath
- fágthauseless, worthless
- cúl-le-rathperson of little worth or usefulness
Italian fannullone, buono a nulla
- fannulloneuseless, worthless
- buono a nullauseless, worthless
- pigrouseless, worthless
- sfaccendatouseless, worthless
- indolenteuseless, worthless
- sfaticatouseless, worthless
- inutileperson of little worth or usefulness
- buono a nullaperson of little worth or usefulness
Japanese つまらない, 碌でなし
- つまらない (tsumaranai)useless, worthless
- 碌でなし (rokudenashi)useless, worthless
- 碌でなし (rokudenashi)person of little worth or usefulness
- 仕様の無い (shiyō-no nai)person of little worth or usefulness
- 下らない (kudaranai)person of little worth or usefulness
Korean 쓸모없다, 소용없다
- 쓸모없다 (sseulmo'eopda)useless, worthless
- 소용없다 (soyong'eopda)useless, worthless
- 녹녹하다 (nongnokhada)useless, worthless
- 거지같다 (geojigatda)useless, worthless
- 지질하다 (jijilhada)useless, worthless
- 보잘것없다 (bojalgeodeopda)useless, worthless
- 건달 (geondal)person of little worth or usefulness
- 밥벌레 (bapbeolle)person of little worth or usefulness
- 놀거리 (nolgeori)person of little worth or usefulness
- 건다리 (geondari)person of little worth or usefulness
- 밥벌거지 (bapbeolgeoji)person of little worth or usefulness
- 밥벌기 (bapbeolgi)person of little worth or usefulness
- 밥장군 (bapjanggun)person of little worth or usefulness
Latin nēquam, nebulō
- nēquamuseless, worthless
- nebulōperson of little worth or usefulness
- scurraperson of little worth or usefulness
Māori kūrapa, hakihakiā
- kūrapauseless, worthless
- hakihakiāuseless, worthless
- koretakeuseless, worthless
- kūrapaperson of little worth or usefulness
Norwegian Bokmål døgenikt, drog
- døgeniktperson of little worth or usefulness
- drogperson of little worth or usefulness
Polish bezużyteczny, nicpoń
- bezużytecznyuseless, worthless
- nicpońperson of little worth or usefulness
- ladacoperson of little worth or usefulness
Portuguese imprestável, inútil
- imprestáveluseless, worthless
- inútiluseless, worthless
- zero à esquerdauseless, worthless
- inútilperson of little worth or usefulness
- imprestávelperson of little worth or usefulness
- zero à esquerdaperson of little worth or usefulness
Russian никчёмный, никуды́шный
- никчёмный (nikčómnyj)useless, worthless
- никуды́шный (nikudýšnyj)useless, worthless
- никчёмный (nikčómnyj)person of little worth or usefulness
- бесполе́зный (bespoléznyj)person of little worth or usefulness
- никуды́шный (nikudýšnyj)person of little worth or usefulness
- безде́льник (bezdélʹnik)person of little worth or usefulness
Spanish bueno para nada, tarambana
- bueno para nadauseless, worthless
- tarambanauseless, worthless
- inútilperson of little worth or usefulness
- bueno para nadaperson of little worth or usefulness
- mindundiperson of little worth or usefulness
- pelagatosperson of little worth or usefulness
- perdularioperson of little worth or usefulness
- pintamonasperson of little worth or usefulness
- pelgarperson of little worth or usefulness
- pelafustánperson of little worth or usefulness
Swedish oduglig, odugling
- odugliguseless, worthless
- oduglingperson of little worth or usefulness
- slashasperson of little worth or usefulness
- odågaperson of little worth or usefulness
- drönareperson of little worth or usefulness
- nollaperson of little worth or usefulness
- klantskalleperson of little worth or usefulness
Thai คนคุ้มค่าน้อย, คนไม่มีประโยชน์
- คนคุ้มค่าน้อยperson of little worth or usefulness
- คนไม่มีประโยชน์person of little worth or usefulness
- คนไร้ประโยชน์person of little worth or usefulness
Turkish yaramaz
- yaramazuseless, worthless
Ukrainian нікче́мний, нікуди́шній
- нікче́мний (nikčémnyj)useless, worthless
- нікуди́шній (nikudýšnij)useless, worthless
Welsh oferwr
- oferwrperson of little worth or usefulness
Cite this entry
APA
good-for-nothing. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/good-for-nothing
MLA
“good-for-nothing.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/good-for-nothing. Accessed November 4, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “good-for-nothing,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/good-for-nothing.
Source: good-for-nothing on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.