ragtag

See also: rag-tag

English

Alternative forms

• rag-tag

Etymology

From earlier tag-rag and tag and rag, from rag + tag.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Adjective

ragtag (comparative more ragtag, superlative most ragtag)

1. Unkempt, shabby, or in a state of disrepair.

   Synonyms: bedraggled, decrepit, motheaten, tattered

   He liked to wear an old ragtag coat that was so threadbare that he'd get sunburned through it.

2. Very diverse; having irregular and dissimilar components.

   Synonyms: motley, jumbled, patchwork, uneven

   The guerrillas were a ragtag band of local thugs, former soldiers, displaced farmers, and political idealists.

Translations

unkempt, shabby, or in a state of disrepair

Bulgarian: раздърпан (bg) (razdǎrpan) Dutch: versleten (nl) Russian: ветхий (ru) (vetxij)

very diverse; having irregular and dissimilar components

Dutch: allegaartje (nl) n Russian: разношёрстный (ru) (raznošórstnyj) Swedish: brokig (sv)

Noun

ragtag (plural ragtags)

1. A shabby, unkempt person.

   Hyponym: ragamuffin

   Near-synonym: ragbag

   • 2013, Casper Parks, Ages Past: The Isolation, page 258:

     The small group of ragtags, who had followed him to the cave a day prior had arrived and kept a short distance away.

See also

• ragtag and bobtail

Anagrams

• tag-rag