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Synonyms

scraggy

American  
[skrag-ee] / ˈskræg i /

adjective

scraggier, scraggiest

  1. lean or thin; scrawny.

  2. meager.

  3. irregular; craggy; jagged.

scraggy British  
/ ˈskræɡɪ /

adjective

  1. lean or scrawny

  2. rough; unkempt

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • scraggily adverb
  • scragginess noun

Etymology

Origin of scraggy

First recorded in 1565–75; scrag + -y 1

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.

He said: "A scraggy dog hit me square between the shoulders and knocked me over. I'd never been so glad to see the old girl. And I think she felt the same".

From BBC • Feb. 3, 2024

Alberto Giacometti’s sculptures of tall, elegantly scraggy humans loom large in people’s minds.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 19, 2022

Unaccountably angry and smug, the scraggy Smithers is Brutus’s cynical, conniving cohort.

From The New Yorker • Apr. 3, 2017

Trim the chicken thighs of scraggy bits of skin.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 29, 2016

Here it is overgrown with bruja-haired trees and scraggy deep grass up to the shoulders.

From "Beast Rider" by Tony Johnston & María Elena Fontanot de Rhoads

Definitions 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.