Besserwisser

Wikipedia: A know-it-all is colloquially referred to as a person who expresses their opinion in an instructive and intrusive manner and thus gives the impression that they have more knowledge or education in certain (or in all) matters or can judge better than others.

People take offense at the behavior of such know-it-alls – not so much because they are envious of their knowledge (alleged or actual), but because they teach others uninvited, but are closed to the opinions, arguments and knowledge of other people.

This creates an air of arrogance and lack of tact. Exaggerated competitive behavior is also perceived as unpleasant by people who are discussing less out of interest in the topic than to be right.

Besserwisser literally besser, better + wisser, from wissen, to know. Better-knower.

In Germany, a tendency to know-it-all is spreading. That could be politically dangerous

NZZ. December 2022. Germans don’t tend towards extremism – actually. But in the political and media sphere, know-it-alls and paternalism are increasingly noticeable. Contempt for the normal is a cause for concern.

For a long time, modern Germany was not a country to worry about from a democratic point of view. According to a study by the Allensbach Institute for Public Opinion from this year, 25 percent of Germans place themselves exactly in the middle of the democratic opinion spectrum; 36 percent slightly to the left, 29 percent slightly to the right of this center. That’s 90 percent between center-left and center-right. Actually calming.

Schäuble: Criticism of German know-it-alls

Wolfgang Schäuble (CDU) sees German politics as increasingly isolated. The senior president and record holder in the Bundestag urges moral restraint.

50 years in the Bundestag. A number that invites you to become fundamental. And that’s exactly what Wolfgang Schäuble did in conversation with Markus Lanz. “We are world leaders when it comes to moral know-it-alls,” he said on Wednesday evening about the attitude of German politics and society these days.