crappy

Crappy means lousy, unpleasant, nasty, inferior, or poorly made.

Crappy is a slang word. It is the adjective form of the noun crap. Because the literal meaning of crap is excrement (poop), it is sometimes considered vulgar. Though crappy rarely refers to excrement, it is still sometimes considered a mild form of profanity (a mild curse word).

Crappy is always used negatively to describe unpleasant things (like a bad day) or things that don’t meet expectations or are considered inferior (like a poorly made product).

The first records of crappy come from the 1840s from the United States (where it is primarily used). But it comes from the much older noun crap, whose origin is uncertain. It may come from the Middle Dutch krappe, meaning “anything cut off or separated.”

Apart from its literal meaning, crap is commonly used to mean “junk” (as in This phone is a piece of crap) or “nonsense” (as in That’s a load of crap and you know it). Crappy never refers to nonsense, but it is commonly used to mean “junky,” “shoddy,” or “inferior,” as in This is such a crappy phone. It can also mean “nasty,” as in That was a crappy thing to do—go apologize! It is perhaps most commonly used to mean “lousy” or “unpleasant,” as in crappy weather or I had a really crappy day at work. Although it can be used in a variety of different contexts, it is always used negatively. In all of its senses, crappy is almost exactly synonymous with the adjective form of a four-letter curse word whose literal meaning is also “excrement.” However, crappy is considered much milder.

What are some other forms related to crappy?

• crap (noun)
• crappiness (noun)

What are some synonyms for crappy?

• lousy
• shoddy
• junky
• unpleasant

What are some words that often get used in discussing crappy?

• weather
• day
• bad

Crappy is a slang word that is especially used in place of words like lousy and shoddy. It is sometimes considered a mild curse word, so it is very informal.

I hate when we get crappy weather cause my knees start to hurt then I’m in pain! 😭

— Kay Nelson (@KaleighNelson17) March 19, 2020

Pro tip: tell kids to find the toys they don't play with and want to donate and they will entertain themselves for hours on old crappy toys.

— Mrs. Flinger (@mrsflinger) February 24, 2013

Just want to watch a movie and forget about this crappy day

— Sameeha (@SimpleeMeeha) March 19, 2020