ne'er-do-well

US:USA pronunciation: respellingUSA pronunciation: respelling(nâr′do̅o̅ wel′)


WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
ˈne'er-do-ˌwell,  n. [countable]
  1. an idle, worthless person.

adj. 
  1. worthless;
    good-for-nothing.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
ne'er-do-well  (nâr′do̅o̅ wel′),USA pronunciation n. 
  1. an idle, worthless person;
    a person who is ineffectual, unsuccessful, or completely lacking in merit;
    good-for-nothing.

adj. 
  1. worthless;
    ineffectual;
    good-for-nothing.
  • 1730–40
    1. . idler, loafer, wastrel.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
ne'er-do-well n
  1. an improvident, irresponsible, or lazy person
 adj
  1. useless; worthless: your ne'er-do-well schemes
'ne'er-do-well' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
waster - Rip Van Winkle
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