thanklessness
thanklessness — 名詞
1. the nature of a job, task, or role that gives little reward, recognition, or app
徒勞；無回報
付出努力卻得不到感謝或認可的性質
the nature of a job, task, or role that gives little reward, recognition, or appreciation no matter how much effort you put into it — for example, cleaning public restrooms or managing angry customer complaints day after day.
Piotr knew the thanklessness of the night shift when no one ever said a word about the clean floors.
Piotr 很清楚夜班工作的徒勞——從來沒有人對乾淨的地板說過一句話。
the + noun + of + noun phrase: the thanklessness of the night shift
The thanklessness of volunteer coordination drove many experienced organisers to quit within a year.
志工協調工作的無回報讓許多有經驗的組織者在一年內紛紛退出。
After a decade of teaching remedial classes, Maeve understood the quiet thanklessness that came with the job.
教了十年補救教學之後，Maeve 明白了這份工作背後那種無聲的徒勞。
There is a deep thanklessness to fixing other people's code errors — nobody even notices the problem was there.
修正別人的程式錯誤有一種深沉的沒人領情——根本沒人注意到問題曾經存在。
Tamar never minded the thanklessness of nursing hospice patients, because their families always remembered her at the end.
Tamar 從不介意護理安寧病人的工作沒人領情，因為家屬到最後總是記得她。
- unappreciatedness
far less common and more technical; used mostly in psychology or sociology writing
- ingratitude
shifts focus from the task to the recipient's attitude; see sense 2
- futility
overlaps in implying wasted effort, but futurity emphasises uselessness, not lack of thanks
- gratification
suggests a sense of reward and satisfaction from one's work
- appreciation
focuses on the recognition received, which is exactly what thanklessness lacks
文法句型
the + noun + of + noun phrase
用法筆記
Almost always uncountable; frequently used with the definite article and an of-phrase specifying the task or role (e.g., the thanklessness of housework). Common in formal or reflective writing rather than casual conversation.
常見錯誤
2. an attitude or quality of being unwilling to express appreciation or recognition
不知感激
不願表達感激的態度或性格
an attitude or quality of being unwilling to express appreciation or recognition for help, gifts, or favours received from others.
Putri could not hide her disappointment at the thanklessness of the children she had raised single-handedly.
Putri 對自己一手帶大的孩子們如此忘恩感到非常失望。
the thanklessness of [someone] — attributing ingratitude to a person or group
Diego felt that his in-laws' thanklessness — they never acknowledged a single birthday gift — said more about them than about him.
Diego 覺得姻親們的不知感恩——他們從未對任何生日禮物表示過謝意——反映的是他們自己的為人，而不是他的問題。
Rania refused to let her father's thanklessness poison her willingness to help others.
Rania 不讓父親的忘恩影響自己幫助他人的意願。
The wealthy donor's thanklessness toward the volunteers who organised the event left a bitter atmosphere in the room.
那位富有捐贈人對籌辦活動的志工們表現出的不知感恩，讓現場氣氛十分難堪。
Aaron's thanklessness surprised everyone, because he had always been the first to thank others for small favours.
Aaron 的忘恩讓大家都很驚訝，因為他一直都是那種連人家幫小忙都會先道謝的人。
- ingratitude
the most direct synonym; slightly less formal and more common in everyday writing
- ungratefulness
very similar in meaning but feels more personal and less detached than thanklessness
- unappreciativeness
less common; emphasises a failure to recognise the value of what was given
- gratitude
the direct opposite — a willingness to express thanks
- thankfulness
implies an inner feeling of appreciation, which may or may not be expressed
文法句型
noun + of + possessive
用法筆記
Frequently appears with a possessive (e.g., her thanklessness, the guest's thanklessness). Unlike sense 1, which describes a task's quality, this sense attributes ingratitude to a person or group as a character trait.