Etymograph

English

nogoodnik

Nogoodnik comes from Russian негодник ‘worthless person, reprobate, ne'er-do-well’, from Proto-Slavic *godьnъ ‘suitable’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʰedʰ- ‘to unite, be associated, suit’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰedʰ-1‘to unite, be associated, suit’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Slavicc. 400–900 CE*godьnъ1‘suitable’reconstructed
  3. Old East Slavicmodernгодьныи1
  4. Russianmodernго́дный2‘fit, suitable, well-suited, good for, valid, appropriate’
  5. Russianmodernнего́дный3‘scoundrel, rascal, good-for-nothing, worthless person’
  6. Russianmodernнегодник4negodnik‘worthless person, reprobate, ne'er-do-well’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1966nogoodnik4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Russian годный
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Russian негодный
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Russian негодник
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English nogoodnik
  5. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1966, TV Guide, Radnor: “Then at the last minute Harris was brought aboard…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰedʰ-Wiktionary, Russian годный‘to unite, be associated, suit’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Slavicc. 400–900 CE*godьnъWiktionary, Russian годный‘suitable’reconstructed
  3. Old East SlavicmodernгодьныиWiktionary, Russian годный
  4. Russianmodernго́дныйWiktionary, Russian негодный‘fit, suitable, well-suited, good for, valid, appropriate’
  5. Russianmodernнего́дныйWiktionary, Russian негодник‘scoundrel, rascal, good-for-nothing, worthless person’
  6. RussianmodernнегодникWiktionary, English nogoodniknegodnik‘worthless person, reprobate, ne'er-do-well’
  7. Englishearliest quotation 1966nogoodnikWiktionary, English nogoodnik. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1966, TV Guide, Radnor: “Then at the last minute Harris was brought aboard…”

Equivalent to no good + -nik

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *gʰedʰ- ‘to unite, be associated, suit’

best, better, good, together, gather, gad, 5 more

Today it means

noun A ne'er-do-well; a person who is no good.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “nogoodnik”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Russian годный, Russian негодный, Russian негодник. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *gʰedʰ- / nogoodnik

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