schmatte

or shmat·te

[ shmah-tuh ]

noun

, Slang.

1. an old ragged garment; tattered article of clothing.
2. any garment.
3. a rag.

Word History and Origins

Origin of schmatte¹

An Americanism dating back to 1965–70; from Yiddish shmate “rag,” from Polish szmata

Example Sentences

All of them worked in the fashion business – or “schmatte” trade, to use the Yiddish term.

From The Guardian

He celebrates his impending freedom from the federal government in college-professor schmatte—glasses and a Cornell sweatshirt—while watching the speech, only to see the signal cut out.

From Time

Welcome to the land of the Silicon Schmatte.

From New York Times

When she finally decides to go glamorous, rejecting the schmatte headquarters has given her in favor of sleek eveningwear, it feels like a victory, for McCarthy and Susan both.

From Time

“If Blanche DuBois took stock and said, ‘This is where it’s at, and I’m going to get rid of these schmatte clothes and get me a nice pants suit, and look smart here, with a pocketbook and a hat’—she would have been all right.”

From The New Yorker