shabby
adjective /ˈʃæbi/
/ˈʃæbi/
(comparative shabbier, superlative shabbiest)
- (of buildings, clothes, objects, etc.) in poor condition because they have been used a lot synonym scruffy
- The outside of the house was beginning to look shabby.
- She wore shabby old jeans and a T-shirt.
- (of a person) badly dressed in clothes that have been worn a lot synonym scruffy
- The old man was shabby and unkempt.
- I suddenly felt rather shabby and uncomfortable.
- (of behaviour) unfair or unreasonable synonym shoddy
- She tried to make up for her shabby treatment of him.
- a shabby affair
- It was a shabby way to treat visitors.
- (informal) not very good
- The contractors did a shabby job of building the extension.
- Roberts has scored eight goals so far this season. Not too shabby (= very good) for a player who only joined the team this year.
Word Originmid 17th cent.: from dialect shab ‘scab’ (from a Germanic base meaning ‘itch’) + -y.