no-good

[ adjective noh-good; noun noh-good ]

/ adjective ˈnoʊˈgʊd; noun ˈnoʊˌgʊd /

Informal.

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See synonyms for: no-good / no-goods on Thesaurus.com

adjective

lacking worth or merit; useless; bad: This no-good faucet never did work properly. Her no-good brother sold me the car.

noun

a person or thing that is worthless or undependable.

QUIZ

CUDDLE UP! A COZY QUIZ ON FALL WORDS HAS ARRIVED

If autumn is your ideal season, spice up your repertoire of "fall" vocabulary with this quiz on some warm and vivid descriptive words for the season.

Question 1 of 10

Which of the following words means “to make a crackling sound; crackle”?

crisp

crepitate

fuscous

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

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Origin of no-good

An Americanism dating back to 1905–10

Words nearby no-good

noggin, nogging, Noginsk, no-go, no-go area, no-good, no-goodnik, no great shakes, no-growth, Noguchi, Noh

How to use no-good in a sentence

As an example of good science-and-society policymaking, the history of fluoride may be more of a cautionary tale.
Anti-Fluoriders Are The OG Anti-Vaxxers|Michael Schulson|July 27, 2016|DAILY BEAST
The speaker conjures up centuries of collective sagacity, aligning oneself with an eternal, inarguable good.
Politicians Only Love Journalists When They're Dead|Luke O’Neil|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I think everybody would like to be handsome and good at karate.
‘Archer’ Creator Adam Reed Spills Season 6 Secrets, From Surreal Plotlines to Life Post-ISIS|Marlow Stern|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Petty, shade, and thirst are my favorite human “virtues” and the trifecta of any good series of “stories.”
‘Empire’ Review: Hip-Hop Musical Chairs with an Insane Soap Opera Twist|Judnick Mayard|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Or has the see and hear and speak-no-evil stance of the Republican House persuaded him that he is in the clear?
The Price of Steve Scalise’s Silence|Jason Berry|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
We resolved to do our best to merit the good opinion which we thus supposed them to entertain of us.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
And with some expressions of mutual good-will and interest, master and man separated.
The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, v. 2(of 2)|Charles Dickens
She did not need a great cook-book; She knew how much and what it took To make things good and sweet and light.
Boys and Girls Bookshelf; a Practical Plan of Character Building, Volume I (of 17)|Various
The Seven-score and four on the six middle Bells, the treble leading, and the tenor lying behind every change, makes good Musick.
Tintinnalogia, or, the Art of Ringing|Richard Duckworth and Fabian Stedman
Those in whom the impulse is strong and dominant are perhaps those who in later years make the good society actors.
Children's Ways|James Sully

Other Idioms and Phrases with no-good

no good

Unsatisfactory, inadequate; also, no use. For example, This work is no good; it'll have to be done over, or It's no good complaining since there's nothing we can do, or I tried to appeal to his sense of generosity, but it did no good. [Mid-1800s] Also see come to an end (to no good), def. 2; do any (no) good.