tatterdemalion
noun·/ˌtæt.ɚ.dɪˈmeɪ.li.ən/
A person in ragged clothes, a shabby figure of picturesque disrepair. The tatterdemalion is visual rather than economic: poverty or neglect rendered as fringe and tear.
A tatterdemalion wandered the fairgrounds with a crown of paper and a grin too proud to beg.
adjective
Ragged; in tatters.
He arrived in a tatterdemalion coat that still carried last winter in its seams.
Etymology
From English tatter with an elaborated, playful ending; a word that sounds like fabric coming apart.
Related Words
ragamuffinoften affectionate, especially of children
bedraggleduntidy, often wet
shabbyworn; less vivid
patchworkthe salvaged aesthetic of repaired tatters