look as if one has been dragged through a hedge backwards en · VERB
Pronunciation
- /ˌlʊk‿əz‿ɪf ˈwʌn həz bɪn ˈdɹæɡd θɹuː‿ə hɛd͡ʒ ˈbækwɜːdz/ (Received-Pronunciation)
- /ˌlʊk‿əz‿ɪf ˈwʌn həz bɪn ˈdɹæɡd θɹu‿ə hɛd͡ʒ ˈbækwɝdz/ (General-American)
- (Southern-England) audio
Meanings
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(UK, humorous, informal, intransitive, qualifier:simile) To look extremely dishevelled.
A nail technician was mortified after splurging £500 on 'princess hair' only to end up looking like she'd been "dragged through a hedge backwards" – after getting in a hot tub. […] The teen confesses that advice is to avoid chlorinated water, wearing your hair in a bun or sleeping with wet hair after having extensions fitted – and she managed to do all three in one night.
[2021 August 18, Martha Cliff, “Hair scare: I spent £500 on ‘princess hair’ – but as soon as I got it wet I looked like I’d been ‘dragged through a hedge backwards’”, in The Sun, London: News Group Newspapers, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 15 Nov 2021:"Papa wants you in the library," she said, coldly; "but I advise you not to go downstairs till you have smoothed your hair. You look as if you had been dragged through a hedge backwards."
1875, Mary Neville, “[A Little Heiress.] Chapter VI. Leaves from an Old Diary.”, in Alice Godolphin and A Little Heiress. Two Stories. […], volume II, London: Samuel Tinsley, […], →OCLC, page 57:"I want the waist to be narrow," I told the tailor at Huntsmans, "I don't want to look as if I've been dragged through a hedge backwards."
2004, Harry Turner, “High Fashion 1947 Style”, in Growing Up in Fulham: Memories of SW6 1940–1953, London: Janus Publishing Company, published 2006, →ISBN, page 215:Fasten that top button, Kosh. […] And tidy up that bearskin! You look like you've been dragged through a hedge backwards.
[2018, Brian Luff, Jack and the Magical Beanstalk: A Traditional Family Pantomime, [London]: Fit2Fill, →ISBN, act I, scene ii, page 22:Bill is right, for I heard him say myself she [a racehorse] couldn't stay; he'd eat her if she won: drawn too fine; was on the go; done too much work; had a bad night, and looked as if she was dragged through a hedge backwards, and hadn't eaten a feed of corn for a month.
1865, R. H. Copperthwaite, “Turf Topics”, in The Turf and the Racehorse […], London: Day and Son, […], →OCLC, pages 78–79:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| looks as if one has been dragged through a hedge backwards | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic | |
| looked as if one had been dragged through a hedge backwards | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| looked as if one had been dragged through a hedge backwards | Tense=Past | lexicographic | |
| looking as if one has been dragged through a hedge backwards | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic |
Synonyms
look like something the cat dragged in
Translations (3)
pl wyglądać jak strach na wróble (to look extremely dishevelled) · mk и́згледа нави́стина неу́редно (to look extremely dishevelled) · fi näyttää aivan sotkuiselta (to look extremely dishevelled)