tatty

Thân thiện

The old house had tatty curtains hanging in the window.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Worn-out and shabby; in poor condition from age or use: Describes something that is frayed, threadbare, or dilapidated.
   • Cheap, gaudy, and tasteless; tawdry: Describes something that is showy in a cheap, vulgar, or flashy way.

Usage and Examples

• Meaning 1 (Worn-out, shabby):
  • The hotel room had tatty carpets and peeling wallpaper.
  • She refused to wear the tatty old sweater.
• Meaning 2 (Tastelessly showy, tawdry):
  • The bar was decorated with tatty gold foil and plastic gems.
  • He criticized the film's tatty special effects.

Advanced Usage and Nuances

• Comparative and Superlative Forms: "tattier," "tattiest."
• Often carries a connotation of neglect or lack of care when describing physical condition.
• When describing style, it implies a lack of sophistication and an attempt to appear glamorous that has failed.

Variants and Related Words

• Tattily (adverb): In a tatty manner.
  • The room was tattily decorated.
• Tattiness (noun): The state or quality of being tatty.
  • The general tattiness of the building was depressing.

Synonyms

• For "worn-out, shabby": shabby, threadbare, frayed, dilapidated, ratty, scruffy.
• For "tastelessly showy": tawdry, gaudy, flashy, garish, meretricious, cheap.

Antonyms

• For "worn-out, shabby": new, pristine, immaculate, smart.
• For "tastelessly showy": elegant, tasteful, refined, understated.

Idioms and Common Phrases

• While "tatty" itself is not commonly used in fixed idioms, it frequently appears in descriptive phrases criticizing appearance or quality.
  • "Tatty chic" (sometimes used ironically to describe a deliberately shabby style).
  • "Looking a bit tatty" (a common colloquial remark about something's deteriorating condition).

Học thuật

Adjective

1. tastelessly showy
   • a flash car
   • a flashy ring
   • garish colors
   • a gaudy costume
   • loud sport shirts
   • a meretricious yet stylish book
   • tawdry ornaments
2. showing signs of wear and tear
   • a ratty old overcoat
   • shabby furniture
   • an old house with dirty windows and tatty curtains

Từ đồng nghĩa

• moth-eaten
• ratty
• shabby