Synonyms of rag

rag 1 of 3

noun (1)

ˈrag 

1

as in newspaper

a publication that appears at regular intervals

the local rag publishes more gossip than news

Synonyms & Similar Words

• newspaper
• periodical
• journal
• magazine
• book
• paper
• organ
• bulletin
• gazette
• mag
• serial
• zine
• newsletter
• review
• yearbook
• edition
• tabloid
• weekly
• diurnal
• daily
• sheet
• quarterly
• annual
• monthly
• bimonthly
• digest
• fanzine
• little magazine
• biweekly
• pictorial
• triweekly
• tab
• semiweekly
• slick
• semimonthly
• newsmagazine
• broadside
• newsweekly
• supplement
• extra

2

as in clothing

rags plural covering for the human body

the girls showed up at the prom wearing their most elegant rags

Synonyms & Similar Words

• clothing
• clothes
• threads
• wear
• dress
• apparel
• attire
• garments
• toggery
• rigging
• raiment
• costume
• weeds
• rig
• gear
• vesture
• clobber
• vestments
• duds
• togs
• habit
• ensemble
• costumery
• outfit
• vestiary
• garb
• habiliment(s)
• wearables
• couture
• underwear
• finery
• tatters
• trim
• pretties
• bravery
• frock
• wardrobe
• livery
• foofaraw
• tawdry
• regalia
• trumpery
• glad rags
• frippery
• caparison
• garderobe
• getup
• underclothes
• tailoring
• sportswear
• civvies
• outerwear
• haberdashery
• smallclothes
• gaiety
• gaudery
• array
• mufti
• guise
• ready-to-wear
• menswear
• nightclothes
• sleepwear
• loungewear
• activewear
• playwear
• prêt-à-porter

rag

2 of 3

noun (2)

chiefly British

as in prank

a playful or mischievous act intended as a joke

a collegiate rag that nearly got him sent down from Oxford

Synonyms & Similar Words

• prank
• trick
• gag
• caper
• joking
• adventure
• experience
• escapade
• practical joke
• antic
• dido
• waggery
• capriccio
• shavie
• frolic
• shine(s)
• roguery
• knavery
• kidding
• time
• game
• monkeyshine(s)
• lark
• performance
• feat
• stunt
• jest
• play
• skylarking
• deed
• hoax
• tomfoolery
• rowdyism
• teasing
• high jinks
• horseplay
• mission
• ploy
• roughhousing
• gambit
• maneuver
• ruse
• shenanigan(s)
• subterfuge
• whim
• whimsy
• deception
• fooling
• stratagem
• trickery
• vagary
• sham
• caprice
• delusion
• conceit
• wile
• deceit
• fancy
• hanky-panky
• fraud
• hoodwinking

rag

3 of 3

verb

as in to scold

to criticize (someone) severely or angrily especially for personal failings

several readers called in to rag the editor for his paper's repeated grammatical lapses

Synonyms & Similar Words

• scold
• lecture
• reprimand
• blame
• criticize
• jaw
• flay
• berate
• upbraid
• call down
• chew out
• bawl out
• chastise
• rail (at or against)
• hammer
• attack
• mock
• baste
• ream (out)
• castigate
• dress down
• lambaste
• admonish
• rebuke
• reproach
• keelhaul
• rant (at)
• rate
• lay into
• fault
• score
• read the riot act (to)
• tongue-lash
• take to task
• chide
• knock
• pan
• slam
• lash
• scourge
• crucify
• excoriate
• vituperate
• disparage
• condemn
• remonstrate (with)
• revile
• ridicule
• harangue
• blast
• censure
• bad-mouth
• denounce
• scorn
• abuse
• assail
• scoff
• lace (into)
• belittle
• reprove
• dis
• reprehend
• put down

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• approve
• endorse
• sanction
• praise
• laud
• extol

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of rag

Noun

Here was my chance to get out of London, this counterfeit of death with its everywhere rage and its moribund culture and its smug population and its streets steeped in resentment and the sky pressing down like a chloroform rag. — Literary Hub, 1 Oct. 2026

The entire middle bun was essentially a sopping wet rag designed to do little more than absorb and deliver sauce into your mouth. — Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 1 Oct. 2026

Verb

The city in the book is a strange hodgepodge of affluence and poverty, of shiny new shops and ragged old ruins. — Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 27 Apr. 2026

If the edges look ragged with tan or white tips, your mower blade is at fault. — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 24 Apr. 2026

Phrases Containing rag

• chew the rag
• rag on