🧽 A cleaning cloth 📰 A cheap newspaper 🎉 A charity event 🎹 A ragtime song 🎹 To play ragtime 😜 A practical joke 😏 To tease

to rag

9.6

To play a tune in the ragtime style

verb
/ræɡ/

Specialized

: tocar al estilo ragtime

They ragged the tune, adding syncopated rhythms typical of early jazz.

Examples

The pianist decided to rag the classic melody for a lively performance.
I can't believe how well you ragged that piece!
Sometimes, musicians enjoy ragging old folk songs to create a new sound.
Can you rag that tune for me?
The band decided to rag a popular jazz standard during their set, delighting the audience.
After practicing for weeks, she was finally able to rag that familiar tune with her own twist.
During the concert, the musicians started to rag the old folk song, giving it a fresh and lively beat.

Idioms

on the rag

Slur

5 9.9

A woman who is having her period, said in a rude way

to feel like a wet rag

8.6

To be very tired and weak after hard effort

Compounds

rag doll

4 2.0

A cloth doll filled with stuffing and with a painted or stitched face

rag doll

Specialized

2 5.8

In video games, a character that falls limp and moves like a cloth doll

oily rag

1 3.4

A piece of cloth soaked in oil used to clean or shine things

toe rag

Offensive

1 9.9

A person who is very unpleasant and treats others badly

snot rag

Offensive

1 9.9

A rude word for a piece of cloth or paper used to wipe your nose

rag bag

1 7.1

A messy mix of things that do not belong together

rag paper

Specialized

1 7.5

A sheet people make from old cloth that lasts a long time

rag trade

1 4.9

A business that makes and sells fashionable clothes

fag rag

Slur

9.9

An insulting name for a magazine about gay or lesbian culture

rag day

6.7

A day often at a university when students hold fun events to raise money for charity

rag gourd

Indian

9.3

A tropical climbing plant with big yellow flowers, edible young fruits, and a dry inside used as a sponge

rag week

9.1

A week when students hold events to raise money for charity

red rag

8.3

A comment or act that makes someone very angry, especially if they are already upset

pine-tar rag

Jargon

8.7

A cloth soaked in pine tar that batters rub on a bat handle to help them hold it better

tag and rag

Jargon

9.8

A method of marking people and keeping records to check safety and how well work is done

wet rag

Offensive

8.5

A person who is dull and has little energy or interest

Surface Forms

rag infinitive

ragged past

ragged past participle

ragging present participle

rags third person singular

Etymology

Rag meaning 'to play in a ragtime style' comes from the music rag or ragtime, so to rag a tune is to play it with the syncopated, lively rhythm of ragtime.