schadenfreude
French, noun
schadenfreude is spelled S-C-H-A-D-E-N-F-R-E-U-D-E (13 letters) and appears about once in every 26 million words in written French, the 162,920th most frequent French word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Schadenfreude is a French feminine noun meaning “schadenfreude (malicious enjoyment derived from observing someone else's misfortune)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). With a capital, Schadenfreude is a different word: “schadenfreude (malicious enjoyment derived from observing someone…”. The French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) defines it as “Joie maligne provoquée par le malheur d’autrui”.
What does schadenfreude mean in English?
noun
- 1
feminineschadenfreude (malicious enjoyment derived from observing someone else's misfortune)
noun
- 1
feminineschadenfreude (malicious enjoyment derived from observing someone else's misfortune)
Source: English Wiktionary, French section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How French dictionaries define it
noun: 1. Joie maligne provoquée par le malheur d’autrui.
The definition in the French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire), in French.
Source: French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire), dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of schadenfreude
- schadenfreudes plural
Source: English Wiktionary and French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
English words that translate to schadenfreude
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is schadenfreude in French?
schadenfreude appears about once in every 26 million words in written French.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).