ticky-tacky

Sometimes tick·y-tack

[tik-ee-tak-ee]

adjective

1. shoddy and unimaginatively designed; flimsy and dull.

   a row of new, ticky-tacky bungalows.

2. tacky.

noun

1. ticky-tacky material or something made of it, especially housing.

Word History and Origins

Origin of ticky-tacky¹

First recorded in 1960–65; gradational compound based on tacky ²