shabby
shab·by/ˈʃæbi/adjective, verb
shabby is spelled S-H-A-B-B-Y: 6 letters and 2 syllables (shab·by). It appears 1.9 times per million words in written English, the 20,101st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, shabby means “Of clothing, a place, etc.: unkempt and worn or otherwise in poor condition due to age or neglect; scruffy” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in shabby?
| Letters | 6: S-H-A-B-B-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: shab·by |
| In writing | 1.9 times per million words; the 20,101st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is shabby?
Shabby appears 1.9 times per million words in written English, the 20,101st most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce shabby?
- US /ˈʃæbi/
Shabby has 2 syllables, split shab·by in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-shabby.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with shabby?
3 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as shabby from its last stressed vowel (/æbi/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of shabby
- shabbier comparative
- shabbiest superlative
- shabbies present, singular, he/she/it
- shabbying participle, present
- shabbied participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does shabby mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Of clothing, a place, etc.: unkempt and worn or otherwise in poor condition due to age or neglect; scruffy.
They lived in a tiny apartment, with some old, shabby furniture.
- 2
Of a person: wearing ragged or very worn, and often dirty, clothing.
The fellow arrived looking rather shabby after journeying so far.
- 3
Of a person, their behaviour, etc.: despicable, mean; also, not generous; stingy, tight-fisted.
shabby treatment
- 4
Poor in quality; also, showing little effort or talent.
His painting is not too shabby.
- 5
archaicOf the pulse: thready, weak.
- 6
UKinformalOf weather: wet and dreary.
- 7
UKChiefly of sheep: affected by shab or scab (“a skin disease”); scabby.
verb
- 1
To make (something) shabby (adjective sense 1); to shabbify.
- 2
To become shabby; to shabbify.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Shabby in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | élimé, miteux, râpé, usé , minable |
| German | schäbig |
| Portuguese | esbodegado, esfarrapado, estropiado , tosco |
| Spanish | astroso, cutre, raído, zarrapastroso , andrajoso, desarrapado |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does shabby come from?
The adjective is derived from shab (“(obsolete except UK, dialectal) scaly skin disease; skin disease of sheep; crust forming over wound, scab”) + -y (suffix meaning ‘having the quality of’ forming adjectives). The verb is derived from the adjective.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).