ragged

adjective

rag·​ged ˈra-gəd 

1

: roughly unkempt

2

: having an irregular edge or outline

3

a

: torn or worn to tatters

b

: worn-out from stress and strain

ran herself ragged

4

: wearing tattered clothes

5

a

: straggly

b

: executed in an irregular or uneven manner

c

of a sound : harsh, dissonant

raggedly adverb

raggedness noun

Synonyms of ragged

• jagged

Examples of ragged in a Sentence

a boy in ragged jeans

You look a little ragged—did you have a rough week?

Recent Examples on the Web

And the house on the corner that had a ragged tarp over the leaky roof. —John Carlisle, Freep.com, 13 Nov. 2025

No army in history seemed ever to have been more ragged and motley and mongrel and polyglot than the Continental, rich and poor, learned and illiterate, from boys to old men, skilled and unskilled, born all over the world, speaking dozens of languages, believing in different gods and in no god. —Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 10 Nov. 2025

The movie begins in 1989, when Martin was just out of her teens and fighting in Toughwoman contests, and spans 22 years, providing all sorts of opportunities for ungainly period hairstyles, from a ragged pageboy to a curly mullet to a frizzy shag. —Alison Willmore, Vulture, 7 Nov. 2025

My breath is nervous and ragged but my will determined. —Vanita Salisbury, AFAR Media, 6 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing ragged

• on the ragged edge
• ragged robin
• run (someone) ragged

Kids Definition

ragged

adjective

rag·​ged ˈrag-əd 

1

: having a rough or uneven edge or outline

ragged cliffs

2

a

: torn or worn to or as if to tatters

a ragged dress

b

: wearing tattered clothes

a ragged child

3

: done in an uneven way

a ragged performance

raggedly adverb

raggedness noun