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Synonyms

tatterdemalion

American  
[tat-er-di-meyl-yuhn, -mal-] / ˌtæt ər dɪˈmeɪl yən, -ˈmæl- /

noun

  1. a person in tattered clothing; a shabby person.

adjective

  1. ragged; unkempt or dilapidated.

tatterdemalion British  
/ ˌtætədɪˈmeɪljən, -ˈmæl- /

noun

  1. rare

    1. a person dressed in ragged clothes

    2. ( as modifier )

      a tatterdemalion dress
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of tatterdemalion

1600–10; first written tatter-de-mallian and rhymed with Italian; tatter 1; -de-mallian < ?

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.