das fünfte Rad am Wagen sein

to be a fifth wheel; to be superfluous

Origin

A very old image for something superfluous; a four-wheeled wagon is already fully equipped. The phrase appears as early as an 11th-c. Latin collection of proverbs.

Source

Building blocks

Words in this expression

fünfte· fifth mir· me (dative)das Rad· wheel das Treffen· meeting vor· before der Wagen· car

Grammar that uses this word

Conjunctional adverb 'deshalb' (therefore)Konjunktionaladverb 'deshalb'
Infinitive construction 'ohne ... zu' / 'anstatt ... zu' (without / instead of doing)Infinitivkonstruktion 'ohne ... zu' / 'anstatt ... zu'
Prepositional adverbs and question words (darauf/worauf)Präpositionaladverbien und Fragewörter (darauf/worauf)
Connector 'während' (whereas, contrastive)Konnektor 'während' (kontrastiv)
Two-way prepositions contrast: Wo? vs. Wohin? (where vs. where to)Wechselpräpositionen Kontrast: Wo? vs. Wohin?
n-declensionn-Deklination

Examples

Bei dem kam ich wie das am .
At the gathering I felt like a fifth wheel.