shoddy
1 of 2noun
shod·dy ˈshä-dē 
1
a
: a reclaimed wool from materials that are not felted that is of better quality and longer staple than mungo
b
: a fabric often of inferior quality manufactured wholly or partly from reclaimed wool
2
a
: inferior, imitative, or pretentious articles or matter
b
: pretentious vulgarity
shoddy
2 of 2adjective
shoddier; shoddiest
1
: made wholly or partly of shoddy
2
a
: cheaply imitative : vulgarly pretentious
shoddy merchandise
b
: hastily or poorly done : inferior
shoddy workmanship
c
: shabby, disreputable
shoddy business deals
shoddily
ˈshä-də-lē
adverb shoddiness
ˈshä-dē-nəs
noun 
Synonyms
Adjective
- bad
- bargain-basement
- bum
- cheap
- cheapjack
- cheesy
- coarse
- common
- crappy [slang]
- cut-rate
- el cheapo
- execrable
- gimcrack
- inferior
- junky
- lousy
- low-grade
- low-rent
- mediocre
- miserable
- poor
- rotten
- rubbishy
- schlock
- schlocky
- shlock
- shlocky
- second-rate
- sleazy
- terrible
- trashy
- trumpery
- wretched
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Adjective They gave a shoddy performance. shoddy merchandise that soon fell to pieces
Recent Examples on the Web
Katherine Lagrave, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 July 2018 That never quite offset his shoddy blocking, unfortunately, which cost him playing time last season. Andy Benoit, SI.com, 8 May 2018 Coby Fleener is too unreliable as a receiver to offset his shoddy blocking. Andy Benoit, SI.com, 25 Apr. 2018 Only traditional organic feeds such as the shoddy are allowed Craig Ballinger, Slate Magazine, 20 Mar. 2017 In her motion for exoneration, filed in Wyandotte County District Court in June 2016, Pilate laid out a story of false arrest, conviction and imprisonment involving a shoddy and corrupted police investigation as well as prosecutorial misconduct. Eric Adler, kansascity.com, 26 Apr. 2017 BostonGlobe.com, 5 June 2022 And expect to be lambasted for your poor reliability and shoddy work. Greg Story, Forbes, 17 Aug. 2022 But the rush by firms short of cash to complete projects has raised a new set of problems: protests over shoddy work. New York Times, 20 June 2022 The near-universal verdict for a while has been that CNN puts out a shoddy product compared with its founding ethos as a straight-shooting 24-hour news service. WSJ, 11 Feb. 2022 As of this writing, Trump faces a potential grand-jury investigation in Georgia for tampering with election officials in 2020 and a probe by local Manhattan prosecutors into the Trump Organization’s shoddy accounting practices. Matt Ford, The New Republic, 18 Aug. 2022 The swift response from the scientific community made both points clear—with even those who support hormones and surgery for gender-dysphoric youth noting that Dr. Turban’s shoddy science undermined their cause. Leor Sapir, WSJ, 17 Aug. 2022 Cairo Santos no longer is surprised by shoddy grass at Soldier Field. Andrew Seligman, Chicago Tribune, 14 Aug. 2022 Thorpe took the fall and his medals were taken from him, though his shoddy treatment generated a vast amount of sympathy worldwide. Los Angeles Times, 4 Aug. 2022 See More
Noun
Recycled pop bottles are made into carpets and seat linings, and cotton shoddy—used to make blue jeans—is recycled and turned into sound insulation. Katherine Lagrave, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 July 2018 That never quite offset his shoddy blocking, unfortunately, which cost him playing time last season. Andy Benoit, SI.com, 8 May 2018 Coby Fleener is too unreliable as a receiver to offset his shoddy blocking. Andy Benoit, SI.com, 25 Apr. 2018 Only traditional organic feeds such as the shoddy are allowed Craig Ballinger, Slate Magazine, 20 Mar. 2017 In her motion for exoneration, filed in Wyandotte County District Court in June 2016, Pilate laid out a story of false arrest, conviction and imprisonment involving a shoddy and corrupted police investigation as well as prosecutorial misconduct. Eric Adler, kansascity.com, 26 Apr. 2017 Adjective
The structural building failure in the oil-rich but impoverished Khuzestan province has focused public attention on shoddy construction practices and prompted mass allegations of government corruption and negligence. BostonGlobe.com, 5 June 2022 And expect to be lambasted for your poor reliability and shoddy work. Greg Story, Forbes, 17 Aug. 2022 But the rush by firms short of cash to complete projects has raised a new set of problems: protests over shoddy work. New York Times, 20 June 2022 The near-universal verdict for a while has been that CNN puts out a shoddy product compared with its founding ethos as a straight-shooting 24-hour news service. WSJ, 11 Feb. 2022 As of this writing, Trump faces a potential grand-jury investigation in Georgia for tampering with election officials in 2020 and a probe by local Manhattan prosecutors into the Trump Organization’s shoddy accounting practices. Matt Ford, The New Republic, 18 Aug. 2022 The swift response from the scientific community made both points clear—with even those who support hormones and surgery for gender-dysphoric youth noting that Dr. Turban’s shoddy science undermined their cause. Leor Sapir, WSJ, 17 Aug. 2022 Cairo Santos no longer is surprised by shoddy grass at Soldier Field. Andrew Seligman, Chicago Tribune, 14 Aug. 2022 Thorpe took the fall and his medals were taken from him, though his shoddy treatment generated a vast amount of sympathy worldwide. Los Angeles Times, 4 Aug. 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Noun
origin unknown
First Known Use
Noun
1832, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Adjective
1847, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Kids Definition
shoddy
adjective
shod·dy ˈshä-dē
shoddier; shoddiest
: poorly done or made
shoddy work
shoddies
noun
as in brummagems
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- brummagems
- simulations
- synthetics
- frauds
- bastards
- impostures
- spoofs
- swindles
- reproductions
- copies
- duffers
- gaffs
- mock-ups
- dummies
- copycats
- facsimiles
- knockoffs
- hoaxes
- counterfeits
- replicas
- fakes
- forgeries
- phoneys
- phonies
- shams
- humbug
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- originals