rag-doll

A child holds a rag-doll in her arms.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • A doll made of cloth: "rag-doll" refers to a soft doll made from scraps of fabric or cloth, often stuffed with material like cotton or wool. It is typically a toy for children, characterized by its simple, handmade appearance.
   • A person who is limp or passive: In informal or figurative use, "rag-doll" can describe a person who is physically limp, unresisting, or easily manipulated, as if made of cloth.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The child clutched her rag-doll tightly while sleeping. (A cloth doll held for comfort.)
  • After the accident, he lay like a rag-doll on the ground. (He was limp and motionless.)

Advanced Usage

• "to be a rag-doll": to be completely limp or unresponsive, often due to injury, exhaustion, or shock.

  • The boxer went down like a rag-doll after the punch. (He collapsed without any resistance.)

• "rag-doll physics": In video games or animation, a term for realistic simulation of limp, lifelike movement of characters when they fall or are hit.

  • The game uses rag-doll physics to make character deaths look more realistic. (The simulation mimics the limpness of a cloth doll.)

Variants and Related Words

• Rag-dollish (adj): resembling or characteristic of a rag-doll, especially in being limp or soft.
  • Her movements were rag-dollish after the long hike. (She moved weakly, like a cloth doll.)

Synonyms

• Cloth doll: a doll made of fabric.
• Limp: lacking firmness or stiffness; easily bent.
• Flaccid: soft and hanging loosely without tension.

Related Idioms

• Like a rag doll: completely limp or unresisting.

  • He was thrown around like a rag doll in the fight. (He was handled with no resistance.)

• Rag-doll effect: the appearance of limpness or lifelessness in movement.

  • The stuntman performed the fall with a perfect rag-doll effect. (He fell as if completely limp.)