1
as in dilapidated
showing signs of advanced wear and tear and neglect
shabby wallpaper that was peeling from the walls
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in tattered
worn or torn into or as if into rags
shabby, stained clothes that are barely better than rags
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shabby
Two fake firsts, seconds, and salary filler to get Anthony Davis and Trae Young is not too shabby.
—
Sportsday Staff, Dallas Morning News, 4 Feb. 2026
Not too shabby for not being formally trained; the duo learned everything online by researching and reaching out to chocolatiers to perfect their technique.
—Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 4 Feb. 2026
The steep rent and the shabby condition of the building, which significantly increases the overall costs of taking it on, have warded off other would-be buyers.
—Kim Velsey, Curbed, 3 Feb. 2026
Flagg wasn’t too shabby, either, with a career-best 49 points to go with 10 rebounds.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 30 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shabby
Sportsday Staff, Dallas Morning News, 4 Feb. 2026
Not too shabby for not being formally trained; the duo learned everything online by researching and reaching out to chocolatiers to perfect their technique.
—Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 4 Feb. 2026
The steep rent and the shabby condition of the building, which significantly increases the overall costs of taking it on, have warded off other would-be buyers.
—Kim Velsey, Curbed, 3 Feb. 2026
Flagg wasn’t too shabby, either, with a career-best 49 points to go with 10 rebounds.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 30 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shabby
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shabby
Adjective
-
Such as dilapidated neighborhoods, toxic air, unkept public parks, failing infrastructure, unreliable public transportation and low wages.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Through the window that day, Smith-Dean saw a potential gold mine for the community, where many who passed by on Spring Avenue saw only a dilapidated structure.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
11 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Enter Tyrannio, a Greek specialist in literature and libraries, owner of some 30,000 scrolls and famed expert on Aristotle — in fact, the same man responsible for restoring the philosopher’s tattered library after it was hauled to Rome.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
9 Feb. 2026
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Concerns about the project and the tattered state of the street have been raised at local community planning meetings, with some wondering whether the work had stalled for some reason.—
Ashley Mackin Solomon,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
His refusal to weaponize suffering is one of his most important — and most neglected— lessons.—
Ed Gaskin,
Boston Herald,
15 Feb. 2026
-
The department issued heavy fines and ultimately shuttered a neglected building in Denver’s uptown neighborhood last year that was owned by CBZ Management.—
Sam Tabachnik,
Denver Post,
8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Use clean, sharp pruners to cut a smooth edge right above a living bud, lateral branch, or along the trunk where there is a ragged break.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
22 Feb. 2026
-
In the absence of pro hoops, ABC found itself with a ragged hole in its Sunday afternoon schedule, which an exec named Dick Button proposed to fill by way of a new show titled The Superstars.—
Anthony Crupi,
Sportico.com,
16 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Before the third siren at seven o’clock Chitol parked his bicycle alongside hundreds of others like it, his identified by a faded yellow piece of his wife’s old sari around the handlebars, which doubled as a duster.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 Feb. 2026
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The trembling bass mixed with faded talk-raps (somewhere between fakemink’s blurry party reports and SoundCloud-era Nav’s fame-hungry melodrama) feels like listening to Mustard’s pop-rap formula from inside the club bathroom.—
Alphonse Pierre,
Pitchfork,
19 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Shabby.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shabby. Accessed 1 Mar. 2026.
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