Unducht

German

Alternative forms

• Untucht

Etymology

From northern Middle High German unduht and Middle Low German unducht (“vice, lack of virtue”). Equivalent to un- +‎ Ducht, Tucht, which also underlies in tüchtig (compare English doughty). This is from Proto-West Germanic *duhti, a derivation from Proto-Germanic *duganą, whence German taugen (“to be suitable, of use”); related with Tugend (“virtue”), but not identical to it.

Pronunciation

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Noun

Unducht f (genitive Unducht, no plural)

1. (archaic) vice, lack of virtue

   Synonyms: Tugendlosigkeit, Untugend

Related terms

• undüchtig

Noun

Unducht m (strong, genitive Unduchts, plural Unduchte)

1. (colloquial, regional, parts of northern and central Germany) scamp, rascal, good-for-nothing

Usage notes

• Used mainly in Westphalia and in parts of Hesse and the Rhineland.

Declension

Declension of Unducht [masculine, strong]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	ein	der	Unducht	die	Unduchte
genitive	eines	des	Unduchts	der	Unduchte
dative	einem	dem	Unducht	den	Unduchten
accusative	einen	den	Unducht	die	Unduchte

Further reading

• “Unducht” in Deutsches Wörterbuch von Jacob und Wilhelm Grimm, 16 vols., Leipzig 1854–1961.