ragged

American  

[rag-id] / ˈræg ɪd /

adjective

1. clothed in tattered garments.

   a ragged old man.

   Synonyms:

   poor, shabby

   Antonyms:

   neat

2. torn or worn to rags; tattered.

   ragged clothing.

3. shaggy, as an animal, its coat, etc.

4. having loose or hanging shreds or fragmentary bits.

   a ragged wound.

5. full of rough or sharp projections; jagged.

   ragged stones.

6. in a wild or neglected state.

   a ragged garden.

7. rough, imperfect, or faulty.

   a ragged piece of work.

8. harsh, as sound, the voice, etc.

9. (of a column of type) set or printed with one side unjustified; either flush left with the right side unjustified ragged right or flush right with the left side unjustified ragged left.

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ragged British  

/ ˈræɡɪd /

adjective

1. (of clothes) worn to rags; tattered

2. (of a person) dressed in shabby tattered clothes

3. having a neglected or unkempt appearance

   ragged weeds

4. having a loose, rough, or uneven surface or edge; jagged

5. uneven or irregular

   a ragged beat

   a ragged shout

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ragged Idioms  

1. see run one ragged.

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Other Word Forms

• raggedly
  adverb
• raggedness
  noun

Etymology

Origin of ragged

First recorded in 1250–1300, ragged is from the Middle English word ragget. See rag ¹, -ed ³

Explanation

Something that's ragged is starting to fall apart. When your favorite sweater is getting ragged, it's so worn that the sleeves are fraying. You'll often see ragged describing clothing or a person's tendency to dress in torn, ratty clothes. Your grandmother might talk about the ragged little boy in her neighborhood, who always wears a dirty t-shirt and jeans with holes in the knees. You might put on your comfortable sweatpants only to realize they've gotten a little ragged, frayed around the waistband.

Example Sentences

Ragged character motivations and unbelievable plot developments are everywhere.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 12, 2026

In 1994 he wrote The Ragged Lion, a fictionalised memoir of the lawyer, author and laird.

From BBC • Feb. 3, 2026

On Friday the officials said that a section, known as Ragged Point, was shuttered “due to slide activity north of this location.”

From New York Times • Mar. 31, 2024

Ragged cliffs of ice tilted 50 meters up into the air, exposing deep layers that had not seen daylight for thousands of years.

From Scientific American • Oct. 18, 2022

Ragged gouges furrowed the walls of the stairwell.

From "Fablehaven" by Brandon Mull