Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Rag
Rag
(răg)
, Verb.
T.
[Cf. Icel.
rægja
to calumniate, OHG. ruogen
to accuse, G. rügen
to censure, AS. wrēgan
, Goth. wrōhjan
to accuse.] To scold or rail at; to rate; to tease; to torment; to banter.
[Prov. Eng.]
Pegge.
Rag
,Noun.
[OE. ]
ragge
, probably of Scand, origin; cf. Icel. rögg
a tuft, shagginess, Sw. ragg
rough hair. Cf. Rug
, Noun.
1.
A piece of cloth torn off; a tattered piece of cloth; a shred; a tatter; a fragment.
Cowls, hoods, and habits, with their wearers, tossed,
And fluttered into
And fluttered into
rags
. Milton.
Not having otherwise any
rag
of legality to cover the shame of their cruelty. Fuller.
2.
pl.
Hence, mean or tattered attire; worn-out dress.
And virtue, though in
rags
, will keep me warm. Dryden.
3.
A shabby, beggarly fellow; a ragamuffin.
The other zealous
rag
is the compositor. B. Jonson.
Upon the proclamation, they all came in, both tag and
rag
. Spenser.
4.
(Geol.)
A coarse kind of rock, somewhat cellular in texture.
5.
(Metal Working)
A ragged edge.
6.
A sail, or any piece of canvas.
[Nautical Slang]
Our ship was a clipper with every
rag
set. Lowell.
Rag bolt
, an iron pin with barbs on its shank to retain it in place.
– Rag carpet
, a carpet of which the weft consists of narrow strips of cloth sewed together, end to end.
– Rag dust
, fine particles of ground-up rags, used in making papier-maché and wall papers.
– Rag wheel
. (a)
A chain wheel; a sprocket wheel
. (b)
A polishing wheel made of disks of cloth clamped together on a mandrel.
– Rag wool
, wool obtained by tearing woolen rags into fine bits, shoddy.
Rag
(răg)
, Verb.
I.
[
imp. & p. p.
Ragged
(răgd)
; p. pr. & vb. n.
Ragging
(răg′gĭng)
.] To become tattered.
[Obs.]
Rag
,Verb.
T.
1.
To break (ore) into lumps for sorting.
2.
To cut or dress roughly, as a grindstone.
Webster 1828 Edition
Rag
RAG
,Noun.
1.
Any piece of cloth torn from the rest; a tattered cloth, torn or worn till its texture is destroyed. Linen and cotton rags are the chief materials of paper.2.
Garments worn out; proverbially, mean dress.Drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags. Prov. 23.
And virtue, though in rags, will keep me warm.
3.
A fragment of dress.