tatty

adjective

tat·​ty ˈta-tē How to pronounce tatty (audio)
tattier; tattiest
: rather worn, frayed, or dilapidated : shabby
a tatty shirt
tattiness noun

Examples of tatty in a Sentence

the owner has let the restaurant become increasingly tatty over the years
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Cash is still printed regularly, because torn and tatty notes need to be replaced. The Week Uk, theweek, 3 Aug. 2024 Orwell typed for hours upstairs, sitting on his iron bedstead in a tatty dressing gown, chain-smoking shag tobacco. Stephen Metcalf, The Atlantic, 5 Apr. 2024 Perhaps irony, like water for the swimming pool, is a resource that dries up seasonally in these parts, leaving only a dust bowl of surly resentment and some tatty deckchairs behind. Jessica Kiang, Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2023 Shacking up in tatty digs on the premises, the men and women who provide daily diversions for the all-inclusive package tourists have the self-organizing camaraderie of a circus troupe. Jessica Kiang, Variety, 17 Aug. 2023 See all Example Sentences for tatty 

Word History

Etymology

perhaps akin to Old English tætteca rag — more at tatter

First Known Use

1513, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of tatty was in 1513

Dictionary Entries Near tatty

Cite this Entry

“Tatty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tatty. Accessed 23 Nov. 2024.

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