shaggy

American  

[shag-ee] / ˈʃæg i /

adjective

shaggier, shaggiest

1. covered with or having long, rough hair.

2. untidy; unkempt.

   a shaggy person.

3. rough and matted; forming a bushy mass, as the hair or mane.

4. having a rough nap, as cloth.

5. characterized by sloppy planning or execution.

   a shaggy production of Macbeth.

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shaggy British  

/ ˈʃæɡɪ /

adjective

1. having or covered with rough unkempt fur, hair, wool, etc

   a shaggy dog

2. rough or unkempt

3. (in textiles) having a nap of long rough strands

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Other Word Forms

• shaggily adverb
• shagginess noun

Etymology

Origin of shaggy

First recorded in 1580–90; shag ¹ + -y ¹

Example Sentences

This seemed to calm him, and he looked up at Penelope, a shaggy black dog with bloodshot eyes.

From Literature

The boy stood still, shaggy hair flying everywhere, and stared up at the towering, twisting tornado.

From Literature

Her spring trip goes heavy on wild greens, with a good dose of truffle hunting, while the fall is a bonanza of shaggy parasol mushrooms and mountain villages.

From The Wall Street Journal

It went quite rightly to Panda, the shaggy black-and-white pet of a fractured Icelandic family in “The Love That Remains,” directed by Hlynur Pálmason.

From The Wall Street Journal

One early reviewer has compared “Shadow Ticket’s” shaggy charm to cold pizza, and readers will know what he means.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• furry
• long-haired