I. ˈrag, ˈraa(ə)g, ˈraig noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English ragge, from (assumed) Old English ragg (whence Old English raggig raggy), from Old Norse rögg tuft, shagginess — more at rug
1.
a. : a waste piece of cloth torn or cut off (as from a fabric or garment) : tatter
b. rags plural : remnants of used or unused cloth and discarded clothing
c. rags plural : clothes
sumptuous rags … cover her emaciated body — Otis Fellows
his neat black suit … among the colored rags of the other passengers — Dan Jacobson
especially : poor or ragged clothing — often used in the phrase in rags
accosted by a beggar in rags
d. : a small cloth ; especially : one devoted to a particular use — usually used in combination
wash rag
dish rag
2.
a. : an unevenly shaped or torn fragment : shred
rags of meat
a rag of cloud
rags of land
rags of bark
b. : scrap , remnant
still clinging … to some rag of honor — R.L.Stevenson
tearing their arguments to rags
not a rag of legality
not a rag of evidence against him
3. : something resembling a rag in appearance: as
a. : sail
a clipper with every rag set — J.R.Lowell
b. : the stringy axis of and the white fibrous membrane investing the pulp and sectional divisions of a citrus fruit
c. : something without strength or stamina
kept … on the jump and left her a rag — W.D.Steele
4. : something resembling a rag in low worth or repute: as
a. : a person held in low esteem
washed-out rag he'd been dragging to dances — Martin Dibner
b. : depreciated paper money
c. : a low or worthless playing card
5.
a. : a ragged edge ; specifically : one left by a cutting tool in metalworking
b. : a fin or burr on cast metal
6. : newspaper , periodical
II. noun
( -s )
Etymology: origin unknown
1. : any of various hard rocks (as a quartzose mica schist used for whetstones or a hard limestone used in building)
coral rag
walls of yellowish, gravelly rag — F.D.Ommanney
2. : a large roofing slate left rough on one side
III. verb
( ragged -gd ; ragged ; ragging ; rags )
Etymology: origin unknown
transitive verb
1. : to rail at : scold
ragging the government — J.A.Michener
ragging a waiter because the toast was cold — Leonard Merrick
2.
a. : to persecute in petty ways : torment , annoy
gave my form a punishment for ragging him — R.G.G.Price
b. : to make fun of or find fault with good-naturedly : tease , chaff
ragged each other about that all day long — F.M.Ford
intransitive verb
chiefly Britain : to engage in horseplay (as in a school dormitory)
rag in the corridors at night — Cyril Connolly
IV. noun
( -s )
1. chiefly Britain
a. : an outbreak of boisterous and usually mischievous merrymaking (as of students in the streets after a football match) : a student riot
b. : a traditional student revel at British universities marked by playful disorder, comic pageantry, and mockery of the authorities
2. chiefly Britain : prank , hoax
rags and japes — Thomas Wood †1950
quite serious … no rag — E.F.Benson
V. transitive verb
( ragged ; ragged ; ragging ; rags )
Etymology: origin unknown
1. : to break (ore) into lumps for sorting
2. : to cut or dress roughly (as a grindstone)
VI. noun
( -s )
Etymology: by shortening
1. : ragtime
2. : a dance in ragtime
VII. verb
( ragged ; ragged ; ragging ; rags )
transitive verb
: to play (a musical composition) in ragtime
intransitive verb
: to dance to ragtime music