Synonyms of scruffy

scruffy

adjective

ˈskrə-fē 

as in dilapidated

showing signs of advanced wear and tear and neglect

dressed in scruffy old clothes to clean out the garage

Synonyms & Similar Words

• dilapidated
• neglected
• mangy
• shabby
• tatty
• tattered
• dumpy
• grungy
• scrubby
• ragged
• miserable
• desolate
• tired
• seedy
• ratty
• tumbledown
• abandoned
• tacky
• down-at-the-heels
• threadbare
• sleazy
• gone to seed
• timeworn
• beat-up
• run-down
• dog-eared
• broken
• ruined
• bombed-out
• moth-eaten
• tatterdemalion
• unkept
• mean
• damaged
• dingy
• decrepit
• forlorn
• bedraggled
• ramshackle
• wrecked
• deteriorated
• rickety
• destroyed
• decaying
• broken-down
• deteriorating
• godforsaken
• worn-out
• injured
• rackety
• hurt
• impaired
• harmed
• rattletrap

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• new
• fresh
• brand-new
• maintained
• kept-up
• reconstructed
• spiffy
• patched
• mended
• smart
• rebuilt
• cared-for
• spruce

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of scruffy

His daughter’s no-nonsense nanny, Malvina (Anna Diaz), side-eyes her bougie employers, while Silvina’s scruffy ex-husband, Ricardes (Manuel Garcia Rulfo), creeps around the gardens, occasionally drawing Camilo into a heart-to-heart. — Beatrice Loayza, Variety, 11 Sep. 2026

There’s also less of the eccentric charm that’s to be found in Wenders’ other docs, like the bits in Pina where the dancers cavort around in scruffy parts of Wuppertal where their home Dance Theater is based. — Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026

Before Jimmy Buffett became synonymous with Margaritaville, Parrot Heads and an entire lifestyle industry, there was a scruffier, stranger and considerably less predictable band finding its way through the bars and back roads of Key West, Fl. — Spin Staff, SPIN, 4 Sep. 2026

Almost half of traders, portfolio managers and strategists in a recent Bloomberg poll support wearing shorts to work, but men in Silicon Valley are turning away from the look of the scruffy tech genius in shorts and flip-flops. — Brittney Melton, NPR, 31 Aug. 2026