Ropey

Ropey is an informal adjective used mainly in British and Australian English to describe something of poor quality, substandard, or unreliable. It can refer to objects, workmanship, performances, weather, or situations. When something is described as ropey, it usually signals disappointment or frustration rather than mild criticism.

Etymology: The sense derives from rope, with the metaphor of something frayed, weak, or unsafe like a rope that might snap. The term dates from the early 20th century in Britain and Australia, and has since become common in everyday slang.

Usage: As predicative or attributive: “a ropey old car,” “a ropey job,” “the weather was ropey today.” It can be used with nouns such as ropey weather, ropey film, or ropey excuses. Some speakers reserve the term for notably poor or dodgy outcomes, and it is often used for emphasis or humor in casual conversation.

Geographic and register: More common in UK and Australia; less common or understood in American English; considered informal and colloquial, not suitable for formal writing. Related terms include dodgy, tatty, shoddy, and rickety.

See also: rope, slang, British and Australian English, colloquialism.