Poor and Shabby

Similar meaning words

Poor adjective - Falling short of a standard.

Usage example: a pretty poor musician, even for a garage band

Show all Definitions

Shabby is a synonym for poor in quality topic. In some cases you can use "Shabby" instead an adjective "Poor", when it comes to topics like inferior, deficient, impoverished.

Nearby Words: poorly, poorness

Shabby adjective - Showing signs of advanced wear and tear and neglect.

Show all Definitions

Poor is a synonym for shabby in quality topic. You can use "Poor" instead an adjective "Shabby", if it concerns topics such as inferior, impoverished, broken-down.

Nearby Word: shabbily

Pauline gets the role because she "looks right" whereas it's said that Winifred looks shabby at auditions due to how poor her family are.

Source: Ironic Inversion
Winifred loses the part of Alice to Pauline mainly because she's from a poor family and looks shabby at auditions, and also seems to lack Pauline's charisma.

Source: Technician vs. Performer
In The Flame In The Flood Scout can encounter a pair of "Feral Children", who are actually quite friendly and helpful despite their shabby appearance and their poor grasp of English.

Source: Wild Child

Cite this Source

Shabby and Poor. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 16, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/poor/shabby

Poor & Shabby. N.p., 2016. Web. 16 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/poor/shabby>.

Shabby or Poor. 2016. Accessed August 16, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/poor/shabby.

Google Ngram Viewer shows how "poor" and "shabby" have occurred on timeline