'good-for-nothing' is a compound formed from the words 'good', 'for', and 'nothing'. 'Good' originates from Old English 'gōd' meaning 'fitting, excellent', and 'nothing' comes from Old English 'nāwiht'/'nāwiht' (literally 'no-thing'), meaning 'nothing'.

'good for nothing' appears in Early Modern English as a descriptive phrase ('good for nothing'), and over time it was commonly hyphenated to 'good-for-nothing' as a fixed compound used both as a noun and an adjective.

Originally a literal description meaning 'good for nothing' (i.e., not useful for any purpose), it evolved into a fixed insult referring to a 'worthless person' or describing something as 'useless'.