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• haggard
  haggard

  adjective

  having a gaunt, wasted, or exhausted appearance, as from prolonged suffering, exertion, or anxiety; worn.
• Haggard
  Haggard

  noun

  (Sir) H(enry) Rider, 1856–1925, English novelist.

haggard

¹ American  

[hag-erd] / ˈhæg ərd /

adjective

1. having a gaunt, wasted, or exhausted appearance, as from prolonged suffering, exertion, or anxiety; worn.

   the haggard faces of the tired troops.

   Synonyms:

   hollow-eyed, drawn, emaciated

   Antonyms:

   robust

2. Archaic. wild; wild-looking.

   haggard eyes.

3. Falconry. (especially of a hawk caught after it has attained adult plumage) untamed.

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noun

1. Falconry. a wild or untamed hawk caught after it has assumed adult plumage.

Haggard ² American  

[hag-erd] / ˈhæg ərd /

noun

1. (Sir) H(enry) Rider, 1856–1925, English novelist.

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haggard ¹ British  

/ ˈhæɡəd /

adjective

1. careworn or gaunt, as from lack of sleep, anxiety, or starvation

2. wild or unruly

3. (of a hawk) having reached maturity in the wild before being caught

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noun

1. falconry a hawk that has reached maturity before being caught Compare eyas passage hawk

Haggard ² British  

/ ˈhæɡəd /

noun

1. Sir ( Henry ) Rider . 1856–1925, British author of romantic adventure stories, including King Solomon's Mines (1885)

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haggard ³ British  

/ ˈhæɡərd /

noun

1. (in Ireland and the Isle of Man) an enclosure beside a farmhouse in which crops are stored

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Other Word Forms

• haggardness
  noun
• haggardly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of haggard

First recorded in 1560–70; originally, “wild female hawk”; see hag ¹, -ard

Explanation

Someone who is haggard looks exhausted and worn out, exactly how you'd expect someone who's been lost at sea for days to look. A haggard appearance is usually the result of a long, harrowing ordeal, like getting lost in the woods or being stranded in the woods for days. An emotional ordeal, like losing a loved one, can also give someone a haggard appearance if they forget to eat, sleep, and take care of themselves. Whatever the ordeal, it will make the person look absolutely awful — pale, gaunt, disheveled, exhausted with dark circles under their eyes and wild, unruly hair.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

haggard Haggard

I have heard from haggard, decrepit millennials that it used to be different, that it used to be grungy and alternative.

From Slate ● Sep. 6, 2026

At the end of the film, Matt Damon’s haggard Odysseus sails toward the unknown, accepting that he doesn’t deserve the comfort of a king.

From Salon ● Jul. 21, 2026

But in 2024, Venezuela produced only about one percent of global crude, its industry left haggard by years of underinvestment, mismanagement and US sanctions.

From Barron's ● Mar. 1, 2026

“Caesar had now been performing for eight years,” Mr. Margolick writes, “and, thin and haggard, wore every week of it . . . it had happened in spurts rather than in increments.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 14, 2025

Then he recognized Garvey, leaning over him, his face haggard with worry.

From "Touching Spirit Bear" by Ben Mikaelsen

Haggard waffled over the years on whether the anti-hippie hardliner anthem was a satire of the crew cut set or a genuine tribute to his conservative father.

From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026

“We have DJs who play everything from Dwight Yoakam to Bruce Springsteen and Merle Haggard to Chappell Roan,” said Chase Manhattan, regional director of entertainment at Desert 5 Spot.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 23, 2025

Among his favourites were the works John Buchan and H Rider Haggard, but Forsyth adored Ernest Hemingway's book on bullfighters, Death in the Afternoon.

From BBC ● Jun. 9, 2025

Further, Haggard wrote, Caldier did not have a “credible reason” for releasing the names and could have made her point without doing so.

From Seattle Times ● May 7, 2024

Haggard women sat on doorsteps with puling babes in their arms.

From The Great House by Stanley John Weyman