shabby
Americanadjective
-
shabbier,
comparative
-
shabbiest
superlative
-
impaired by wear, use, etc.; worn.
shabby clothes.
-
showing conspicuous signs of wear or neglect.
The rooms on the upper floors of the mansion had a rather shabby appearance, as if they had not been much in use of late.
-
wearing worn clothes or having a slovenly or unkempt appearance.
a shabby person.
-
run-down, seedy, or dilapidated.
a shabby hotel.
-
meanly ungenerous or unfair; contemptible, as persons, actions, etc..
shabby behavior.
-
inferior; not up to par in quality, performance, etc..
a shabby rendition of the sonata.
adjective
-
threadbare or dilapidated in appearance
-
wearing worn and dirty clothes; seedy
-
mean, despicable, or unworthy
shabby treatment
-
dirty or squalid
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of shabby
1660–70; shab ( Middle English; Old English sceabb scab ) + -y 1; cognate with German schäbig
Explanation
The adjective shabby describes something that is threadbare or worn out. Your last apartment was clean, but the furniture and carpets were so shabby that you were embarrassed to invite your friends over. The adjective shabby also describes a manner of acting that is mean or contemptible. If you spent your whole childhood treating your younger brother in a shabby way, you can't expect him to be your friend when you're older. In modern slang, if you say something is "not too shabby," you mean that it was good. You might compliment your brother by telling him his soda can sculpture isn't too shabby.
Vocabulary lists containing shabby
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The company's forecast for a further decline in revenues was particularly troubling, said Saunders, who called the outlook "shabby."
From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026
That’s not a shabby amount—but if the holders in turn want to actually realize that value by selling their tokens, it doesn’t seem apparent that other folks are now too willing to buy them.
From Slate ● Sep. 9, 2026
Not too shabby for a series that premiered to mixed reviews and was canceled after just three seasons.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026
Dressed in a shabby old coat and chic beret—“a look halfway between woman of mystery and lobster fisher”—Nora aims to thwart a dangerous psychopath while protecting the policeman with whom she’s increasingly smitten.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
He twitched and sighed often in his sleep, as old dogs will, and for once his shabby tail with the bare patch on the last joint was still.
From "The Incredible Journey" by Sheila Burnford
A shabbier perspective is integral to any depiction of Jacobs’ work.
From Salon ● Mar. 27, 2026
The meeting house grows progressively more dilapidated, and the costumes get shabbier, indicating that things aren’t going well for the Puritans.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 2, 2026
However, the photo she said she took in person showed a much shabbier house, featuring uneven grass and cluttered with yard equipment where the bench was supposed to be.
From Slate ● Oct. 17, 2025
He enjoyed a comfortable childhood north of Montana, until the family real estate company faltered in the early ’90s and the Millers eventually relocated to a smaller rental on Santa Monica’s shabbier southern end.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2025
The hallway with its eight doors seemed smaller to Lina than it had when she was a student, and shabbier.
From "The City of Ember" by Jeanne DuPrau
But it is a copout of the shabbiest sort to exploit this anxiety as a way of averting our gaze from the undiminished threat of North Korea.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 17, 2017
We’re the ones who highlight the shabbiest research.
From Slate ● Aug. 28, 2016
The pattern veered to the extreme Saturday afternoon, when the Nationals followed their self-described biggest win of the season with one of their shabbiest losses.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 29, 2013
Not the shabbiest of lists, we're sure you'll agree.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 23, 2013
Though the Nolans lived in the shabbiest house in Irish Town, the boys were the dressiest in the neighborhood.
From "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Betty Smith
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
