abrackern
work oneself to the bone
Definition & meaning
abrackern is usually used reflexively as sich abrackern : to toil, slog, or work oneself very hard, often to the point of exhaustion. It can suggest that the effort is strenuous or excessive.
- Sie hat sich den ganzen Tag abgerackert. — “She slogged away all day.”
- Er rackert sich für seine Familie ab. — “He works himself to the bone for his family.”
Grammar & Word origin
abrackern is a separable verb: in a main clause, the prefix ab- moves to the end: Ich rackere mich ab. Its past participle is abgerackert , and it takes haben in the perfect tense: Ich habe mich abgerackert.
It is generally used with a reflexive pronoun: sich abrackern. The word combines the separable prefix ab- with rackern , “to toil” or “to work very hard.” The origin of rackern is uncertain.
Synonyms & antonyms
- sich abmühen — “to struggle or exert oneself”; emphasizes difficulty, not necessarily a long stretch of hard work.
- sich abrackern is close in meaning to sich abarbeiten , “to work oneself hard”; the latter can also mean wearing oneself down through work.
- schuften — “to toil” or “to slog”; informal and often suggests unpleasant or demanding work.
There is no exact one-word antonym. Depending on context, sich ausruhen (“to rest”) or entspannen (“to relax”) expresses the opposite.
Common phrases & collocations
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Examples
Sie rackert sich jeden Tag ab.verb
She works herself to the bone every day.
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