OK, this goes a ways for the origin. I spend way too much time on Youtube when I'm idle (which hasn't happened enough lately, what with the upcoming obsequies and returning to work). One of the channels I follow is RobWords. He does videos about language, including obscure words, etymologies, puns, homonyms, and the like. One of his recents was about words we should steal from German.
He's also got a newsletter, into which he sometimes includes stuff that didn't make the video, and one of the words left out of the "steal from German" video was Verschlimmbesserung. He defines it as "An attempt to make something better that only serves to make it worse. Literally a 'worsening improvement'."
I think that's about the best thing to come out of Germany since Martin Luther, and intend to try to remember it. Battery-dependent bike shifting? Self-checkout lanes? Telephone-support menu hells? All Verschlimmbesserungen. (I gotta remember that double-M in the middle. And is -en the right way to make it plural?)
There's no English equivalent, and those who know me, know I'd have to spend three paragraphs trying to describe one. The German penchant for compounding words to capture meanings has come up with a winner. I am struck with awe and gratitude.
(Since I'm on about words today, I can't remember if I've told youse about Anu Garg's Word A Day email [you can subscribe here]). He doesn't sell your contact info, he's more left-wing than I, and he comes up daily with neat words and usages.There's also a weekly digest of comments he's received. I like it way a lot.)
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