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Shabby vs Shaggy - What's the difference?

shabby | shaggy |

As adjectives the difference between shabby and shaggy

is that shabby is torn or worn; poor; mean; ragged while shaggy is rough with long or thick hair, fur or wool; unshaven, ungroomed, or unbrushed.

shabby

English

Adjective

(er)
  • Torn or worn; poor; mean; ragged.
  • * {{quote-book, year=1905, author=
    • , title= , chapter=2 citation , passage=Miss Phyllis Morgan, as the hapless heroine dressed in the shabbiest of clothes, appears in the midst of a gay and giddy throng; she apostrophises all and sundry there, including the villain, and has a magnificent scene which always brings down the house, and nightly adds to her histrionic laurels.}}
    They lived in a tiny apartment, with some old, shabby furniture.
  • Clothed with ragged, much worn, or soiled garments.
    • The fellow arrived looking rather shabby after journeying so far.
  • Mean; paltry; despicable.
    • shabby treatment

    Derived terms

    * shabby-genteel (Webster 1913)

    shaggy

    English

    Adjective

    (er)
  • Rough with long or thick hair, fur or wool; unshaven, ungroomed, or unbrushed.
  • * 1900 , , (The Wonderful Wizard of Oz)
    • They waited until Dorothy awoke the next morning. The little girl was quite frightened when she saw the great pile of shaggy wolves, but the Tin Woodman told her all. She thanked him for saving them and sat down to breakfast, after which they started again upon their journey.
  • Rough; rugged; jaggy.

    • Derived terms

    * shaggy dog story