Schadenfreude
German, noun/ˈʃaːdənˌfʁɔɪ̯də/
Schadenfreude is spelled S-C-H-A-D-E-N-F-R-E-U-D-E (13 letters) and appears 1.3 times per million words in written German, the 33,501st most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Schadenfreude is a German feminine noun meaning “malicious enjoyment derived from observing someone else's misfortune; schadenfreude; gloating” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The German Wiktionary defines it as “Vergnügen über das Missgeschick oder Unglück eines anderen”.
What does Schadenfreude mean in English?
noun
- 1
femininemalicious enjoyment derived from observing someone else's misfortune; schadenfreude; gloating
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
noun: 1. Vergnügen über das Missgeschick oder Unglück eines anderen
The definition in the German Wiktionary, in German.
Source: German Wiktionary, dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
How do you pronounce Schadenfreude?
- /ˈʃaːdənˌfʁɔɪ̯də/
- Germany /ˈʃaːdn̩-/
- /ˈʃaːdɛnˌfʁɔɪ̯dɛ/
Sources: English Wiktionary, German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to Schadenfreude
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is Schadenfreude in German?
Schadenfreude appears 1.3 times per million words in written German.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).