1. worn and shabby; in poor condition: informal"the room was furnished in slightly tatty upholstered furniture"
▪ of poor quality:informal"his gap-toothed smile and tatty haircut"
Word Originearly 16th century (originally Scots, in the sense ‘tangled, matted, shaggy’): apparently ultimately related to Old English tættec ‘rag’, of Germanic origin; compare with tattered.