From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishshabbyshab‧by /ˈʃæbi/ ●○○ adjective 1 CONDITION/STATE OF somethingshabby clothes, places, or objects are untidy and in bad condition because they have been used for a long time Hugh’s jacket was old and shabby. a shabby little restaurant2 CONDITION/STATE OF somethingwearing clothes that are old and worn a shabby tramp3 UNFAIR old-fashionedUNKIND unfair and unkind a shabby trick —shabbily adverb —shabbiness noun [uncountable]
Examples from the Corpus
shabby• After this, Tate Britain at Millbank feels cramped, parsimonious and a bit shabby.• By then, of course, it was totally shabby.• She wore shabby black clothes, with holes in the elbows of her jacket.• John was standing in the doorway in his shabby blue suit.• Politically, it was essential last summer to distance the government from what had clearly been a shabby episode.• Much to the consternation of the operators, Humphrey's shabby figure would appear and then disappear into high-speed machinery.• shabby hotel rooms• Solid provincial comfort, a little shabby now, but solid.• a shabby old man• a shabby suit• The villages and towns they passed through were shabby where buildings had long since been left to decay.• At 29 Howard's Avenue the builder's skip was still outside and the rusty scaffolding blinded its shabby windows.Origin shabby (1600-1700) shab “scab, worthless man” ((11-19 centuries)), from Old English sceabb “scab” 