ragbag
nounEtymology Compound of rag + bag.
1
A bag of rags and scraps.
2
Figuratively A collection containing a variety of miscellaneous things; a smorgasbord.
- The pages that constitute "Anna Livia Plurabelle" are surely the most easily decipherable in that masterly and monstrous ragbag of a book.2019 May 14, John Banville, “Colin Farrell Joins the League of High-Profile Narrators of 'A Portrait of the Artist'”, in The New York Times Book Review, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 12 Mar 2023:
- In our ragbag of stereotypes, ostriches have thus become the quintessential dim-witted animals. Even the Bible says they're dumb, and bad parents too.2020 August 4, Richard Conniff, “They may look goofy, but ostriches are nobody's fool”, in National Geographic, Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Partners, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 02 Apr 2023:
1 more example
- Opposite, the Loram site contains a real ragbag of yellow, blue or rust-streaked kit whose appearance belies their importance in keeping the railways running.2020 November 18, Paul Bigland, “New infrastructure and new rolling stock”, in Rail, page 49:
3
Figuratively, Informal A person (especially a woman) of unclean or untidy appearance.
- Near-synonym: ragtag
- Billy and the rest were wooed through gate after gate, and Billy saw his first Russian. The man was all alone in the night—a ragbag with a round, flat face that glowed like a radium dial.1969 March 31, Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., Slaughterhouse-Five […] (A Seymour Lawrence Book), New York, N.Y.: Delacorte Press, →OCLC, page 71: