1890–95; < German, equivalent to Schaden harm + Freude joy
When another person's bad luck secretly makes you feel good, that's schadenfreude. Your brother's rejection from a college that also rejected you might give you a twinge of schadenfreude. If you're fired from your difficult job, no one can blame you for a bit of schadenfreude as you watch your replacement struggle with your old tasks. This German word perfectly captures that satisfied feeling everyone gets at times when someone else runs into misfortune. In German, Schadenfreude literally means "damage-joy," and it's always spelled with a capital S. The word came into English use in the 1920s, and you can spell it with a small s if you prefer.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But there’s no schadenfreude watching her squeeze into a middle seat, no glee in her comeuppance.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2026
For those seeking schadenfreude, look no further than the immense coach doors, opening to the front and hinged at the rear.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026
If the world was looking to extend its schadenfreude, Paltrow was all too happy to be the one to push it further.
From Salon • Dec. 22, 2025
But schadenfreude is the American way, especially if it happens on national television.
From Salon • Sep. 7, 2025
With barely concealed and gleeful schadenfreude, the Russians said that the Enron scandal undermined their confidence in Western accountants and the GAAP.
From Crime and Corruption by Vaknin, Samuel
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
