shabbier; shabbiest
1
: clothed with worn or seedy garments
a shabby hobo
2
a
: threadbare and faded from wear
a shabby sofa
b
: ill-kept : dilapidated
a shabby neighborhood
3
a
: mean, despicable, contemptible
must feel shabby … because of his compromises—
Nat Hentoff
Nat Hentoff
b
: ungenerous, unfair
laments the shabby way in which this country often treated a poet—Paul Engle
Paul Engle
c
: inferior in quality
shabby reasoning
Synonyms
Examples of shabby in a Sentence
The furniture was old and shabby.
He wore a shabby coat.
Her first apartment was pretty shabby.
They complained about the shabby treatment they received at the hotel.
Backing out of the deal was a shabby thing to do.
Recent Examples on the Web
Looks pretty shabby when Android phones up and down the budget spectrum offer 120Hz displays.
—Allison Johnson, The Verge, 7 Sep. 2024
While the $174,000 annual pay likely doesn't sound too shabby to those living in a country where the median individual wage comes to just over $59,000 a year, members of Congress are earning wages that were set in 2009.
—Kate Gibson, CBS News, 5 Nov. 2024
Set along the banks of the Chama River, the farm’s breathtaking mountain views aren’t too shabby, either.
—Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 28 Oct. 2024
Heidi gave the wood trim a ‘shabby chic’ sanding job, which survives to this day.
—Architectural Digest, 30 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for shabby 
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Allison Johnson, The Verge, 7 Sep. 2024
While the $174,000 annual pay likely doesn't sound too shabby to those living in a country where the median individual wage comes to just over $59,000 a year, members of Congress are earning wages that were set in 2009.
—Kate Gibson, CBS News, 5 Nov. 2024
Set along the banks of the Chama River, the farm’s breathtaking mountain views aren’t too shabby, either.
—Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 28 Oct. 2024
Heidi gave the wood trim a ‘shabby chic’ sanding job, which survives to this day.
—Architectural Digest, 30 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for shabby
Articles Related to shabby
Dictionary Entries Near shabby
Cite this Entry
“Shabby.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shabby. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
shabby
adjective
shab·by
ˈshab-ē 
shabbier; shabbiest
1
: dressed in worn clothes
2
a
: worn and faded from wear
a shabby sofa
b
: ill kept : dilapidated
shabby houses
3
: not fair or generous
shabby treatment
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