the owner has let the restaurant become increasingly tatty over the years
Recent Examples on the WebOrwell typed for hours upstairs, sitting on his iron bedstead in a tatty dressing gown, chain-smoking shag tobacco.—Stephen Metcalf, The Atlantic, 5 Apr. 2024 Perhaps irony, like water for the swimming pool, is a resource that dries up seasonally in these parts, leaving only a dust bowl of surly resentment and some tatty deckchairs behind.—Jessica Kiang, Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2023 Shacking up in tatty digs on the premises, the men and women who provide daily diversions for the all-inclusive package tourists have the self-organizing camaraderie of a circus troupe.—Jessica Kiang, Variety, 17 Aug. 2023 Look closely, and the beggar’s left hand has disappeared, tucked inside the placket of his tatty jacket.—Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times, 31 July 2023 Stay at the grand but tatty Sofitel Winter Palace, overlooking the Nile on the east bank, or the boutiquey, just renovated Al Moudira, amid farmland on the west bank.—Klara Glowczewska, Town & Country, 18 June 2023 And the Brits find themselves at a disadvantage when their vaunted national security apparatus proves to be a bit tatty.—John Anderson, WSJ, 21 Feb. 2023 Her mordant social commentary is lodged between the glamorous fizz of Warhol and the tatty thrift store aesthetic of Mike Kelley.—Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times, 30 Nov. 2022 All the walls were painted the same dull white, and there were only a few tatty posters for decoration.—Alex Marshall, New York Times, 17 Nov. 2022
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tatty.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
perhaps akin to Old English tætteca rag — more at tatter
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