straggly

adjective

strag·​gly ˈstra-g(ə-)lē 

stragglier; straggliest

: spread out or scattered irregularly

a straggly beard

Examples of straggly in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Pepe the King Prawn is a Spanish Muppet with four arms, orange skin and straggly hair; the character is known for being an outrageous flirt, and being offended when people refer to him as a shrimp. —Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 22 Dec. 2024

Long story short, more bleach was applied and my hair started to melt away in straggly clumps at the backwash. —Humeara Mohamed, refinery29.com, 7 June 2024

Green always looks good, and what better way to clean up the straggly top of a Christmas tree than with this symmetrically pleasing beauty? —Grace Smith, Town & Country, 5 Dec. 2022

The lines of the new districting maps look cleaner, not as many straggly fingers reaching into nether regions, but the details are dirtier. —J.d. Crowe | [e-mail], al, 4 Nov. 2021

The definition is crisp enough to show things like textures in a towel and the straggly hairs of my beard but missed the scar above my right eye. —Hunter Fenollol, Popular Mechanics, 26 Oct. 2021

There are no straggly flower stalks to cut off until late in the season. —Steve Bender, Southern Living, 21 June 2021

Left to its own devices, Robbins explained, hazelnut grows into a straggly, shrubby tree. —Kiliii Yüyan, History & Culture, 17 Dec. 2020

Viewers see Raniere at volleyball practice in a tie-dye shirt and short shorts, his straggly ponytail subdued by a sweatband. —Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 8 Nov. 2020

Word History

First Known Use

1818, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for straggly

• scraggly