no-good 1 of 2

adjective

ˈnō-ˈgu̇d How to pronounce no-good (audio)
Definition of no-goodnext
1
as in good-for-nothing
having no ambition, success, or value to society tired of supporting their spendthrift, no-good daughter, who has yet to find a job commensurate with her alleged abilities

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in worthless
having no usefulness that no-good chair should be thrown away

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

no-good

2 of 2

noun

ˈnō-ˌgu̇d How to pronounce no-good (audio)
1
as in villain
a mean, evil, or unprincipled person neighbors remembered the killer as having been an utter no-good since childhood

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bum
an idle worthless person we'll have to pay more than minimum wage for the job if we expect to get people other than no-goods

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of no-good
Adjective
Archie has a no-good, very-bad day, and Dylan goes to bat for her students. — Erin Qualey, Vulture, 16 Mar. 2026 Released in 1958, Attack told of a wealthy heiress, fresh from a stint at a mental institution, who is turned into a giantess and then deals with her philandering husband and his no-good, money-grubbing floozy. — Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 9 Jan. 2026
Noun
Released in 1958, Attack told of a wealthy heiress, fresh from a stint at a mental institution, who is turned into a giantess and then deals with her philandering husband and his no-good, money-grubbing floozy. — Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 9 Jan. 2026 The ordeal at Keystone gave me an up-close view of the no-good, very bad 2025-26 ski season. — Frederick Dreier, Outside, 9 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for no-good
Recent Examples of Synonyms for no-good
  1. good-for-nothing
  2. worthless
  3. villain
  4. bum
  5. lazy
  6. brute
  7. beggar
  8. criminal
Adjective
  • With Jun-hyeon trapped in a coma inside of Yong-ho’s older body, Yong-ho goes about seeking revenge on his good-for-nothing children, and ensuring the future of the Choiseong Group.
    — Kayti Burt, Time, 6 July 2026
  • The black comedy crime film is written by Niki Sheldrake and tells the story of Colin and Stanley, two good-for-nothing brothers who are faced with the repayment of their dead father’s debt to a notorious loan shark named Maggie.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 8 May 2024
Definition of good-for-nothing
Adjective
  • The referee’s visual countdown may prove worthless if the player trotting off has his back to the official, which will invariably be the case.
    — Graham Scott, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2026
  • And since Jace’s death, she’s treated Baela as nothing more than a defective surveillance drone — a worthless piece of tech that never spots Vhagar.
    — Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of worthless
Noun
  • Furious drops the ball a bit in the interactions with Emma and Jay Easton, turning them into one-dimensional caricatures instead of complex villains, but honestly, this show isn’t really about them.
    — Erin Qualey, Vulture, 24 Aug. 2026
  • Saoirse Ronan is ready to step into the dark side and is doubling down on wanting to play a villain in the James Bond universe.
    — Armando Tinoco, Deadline, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of villain
Noun
  • For families Apart from the family-sized villa estates and kid-friendly menus, Nihi has a host of activities that will please even the youngest beach bums.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 13 Aug. 2026
  • And for any bum stuff Ted might want confidentially looked at.
    — Hannah Abraham, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of bum
Adjective
  • The resort has its own waterpark with a freeform swimming pool, baby pool, two-story slide, and lazy river.
    — Allison Tibaldi, USA Today, 25 Aug. 2026
  • The other irony is that many of the characters on these very shows would hate this kind of lazy legacy thinking and would balk at it.
    — Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of lazy
Noun
  • Most sportsmen wonder how any whitetail bucks, let alone a brute such as Kontras’, could have been so easily patterned.
    — Jeff Murray, Outdoor Life, 20 Aug. 2026
  • The show’s depiction of Hugh as a family man has been much more sympathetic than the book’s description of him as a power-hungry brute.
    — James Grebey, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of brute
Noun
  • Robert Pattinson’s big outburst in Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey,’ has gone viral—here’s the ‘beggars’ meme, explained.
    — Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 26 July 2026
  • Antinous shocked even the other suitors by insulting and assaulting an elderly beggar; when the beggar revealed himself as Odysseus and slew the suitors, Antinous was the first to die.
    — Gitanjali Roy, Encyclopedia Britannica, 21 July 2026
Definition of beggar
Noun
  • Boxing is fun especially when the boxer in question is beating up criminals in East London.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026
  • Working together to track these flows would reduce the chance that international criminals can extend their reach beyond any single jurisdiction.
    — Alvin Camba, Foreign Affairs, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of criminal

Browse Nearby Words

noggins
no-good
no-goodnik
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“No-good.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/no-good. Accessed 27 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of southpaw

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Why do we say 'break a leg'?

16 Glee-ridden Words from Schitt's Creek
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
alt-684346df967d5
Add A Letter Quiz Pick the letter that goes in the same spot in fou...
See All