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

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

Halfway into my second drink, a scruffy, tall guy with silvery blond hair from New York sat down next to me. — Andrea Javor, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026

Over the course of the last three weeks, some of the biggest names in the business of reporting on (and pontificating about) sports media have transformed themselves into a scruffy simulacrum of the town elders from Footloose. — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 11 Aug. 2026

Vibrant, free-spirited, and sometimes a little scruffy around the edges, some love it, others don’t—and Brighton is very ok with that. — Katie Silcox, Vogue, 6 Aug. 2026