scraggly

All the denizens of Thoreau’s Cape Cod, from its scraggly scrub pine trees to its people, exemplify the humility that goes hand-in-hand with danger.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 29, 2026

A shriek broke the dawn on the savannah, followed by more screeches and the rustle of branches: The wild Fongoli chimps were bidding each other good morning in the dry, scraggly Sahel.

From Barron's ● Jan. 15, 2026

A scraggly crust punk wore a jacket patched with an upside-down American flag.

From Slate ● Apr. 9, 2025

On Jan. 9, as the Eaton fire still blazed, Davis returned to his own home to capture in watercolors the scraggly trees, the overturned plants, the still-standing chimneys.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 4, 2025

It looked scraggly and freakish, permanently stuck in its twisted, tortured position, and it made me think of how some adults tell you not to make weird faces because your features could freeze.

From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls

“You don’t want to answer the door with wet hair and be the scraggliest person at your own party,” she says.

From Washington Post ● Nov. 9, 2021

But Kimbrel, the Red Sox closer, and Turner, the Dodgers’ third baseman, now seem to be competing for the unofficial title of bushiest, scraggliest, most unkempt beard in sports.

From New York Times ● Oct. 22, 2018