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scruffy

[ skruhf-ee ]
/ ˈskrʌf i /
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adjective, scruff·i·er, scruff·i·est.

untidy; shabby.

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RELATED WORDS

shabby, seedy, tattered, unkempt, threadbare, tacky, frowzy, mangy, messy, ragged, run-down, slovenly, untidy

Nearby words

  1. scrubdown,
  2. scrubland,
  3. scrubs,
  4. scrubwoman,
  5. scruff,
  6. scrum,
  7. scrum half,
  8. scrummage,
  9. scrummie,
  10. scrummy

Origin of scruffy

First recorded in 1650–60; scruff2 + -y1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for scruffy

British Dictionary definitions for scruffy

scruffy

/ (ˈskrʌfɪ) /

adjective scruffier or scruffiest

unkempt or shabby
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
Word Origin and History for scruffy

scruffy

adj.

1650s, "covered with scurf," from scruff "dandruff, scurf" (late Old English variant of scurf) + -y (2). Generalized sense of "rough and dirty" is from 1871. Related: Scruffily; scruffiness.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper