flittig

Flittig is an adjective used in several North European languages, notably Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish, to describe someone who is diligent, industrious, and hardworking. In Swedish the form is flitig, while Norwegian and Danish use flittig. It is commonly applied to people such as students, workers, or employees who show consistent effort and reliability, e.g., a flitig student or a flittig arbeidstaker.

In usage, flittig emphasizes sustained effort and careful work rather than occasional or flashy achievement. It is a positive term and can appear in both formal and informal contexts. The word is often related to the noun forms flit in Swedish or flid in Norwegian, which denote diligence or labor, and it can appear in compounds or idiomatic phrases discussing work ethic.

Etymology traces flittig to the North Germanic linguistic area, with cognates across Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish. The term shares a common heritage with related nouns for diligence and effort in these languages, reflecting a long-standing cultural emphasis on industriousness and reliable conduct in daily life and work.

Variants and related terms include flitig (Swedish), flittig (Norwegian and Danish), and the corresponding nouns flit or flid in related languages. Antonyms include lazy or idle equivalents such as lat, svak, or urove in different Scandinavian contexts, while related concepts center on diligence, perseverance, and conscientiousness.

See also: diligence, work ethic, industriousness, etymology of North Germanic words for labor.