rickety

comparative ricketier · comparative more rickety · superlative ricketiest · superlative most rickety · alternative ricketty · alternative rickedy

1. Of an object: not strong or sturdy, as because of poor construction or upkeep; not safe or secure.

   He hesitated about climbing such a small, rickety ladder.

   1 more example

   She now knew every article Mrs Dibble had to sell, and the large part of the stock that was unsaleable by reason of its damaged state. Customers turned away from rickety chairs, stands of drawers that refused to open, or had no handles, lop-sided wardrobes whose doors were out of plumb or whose mirrors were cracked.

   1950, Norman Lindsay, Dust or Polish?, Sydney: Angus and Robertson, page 61

   Synonyms: precarious, rachitic, shaky, tottering, unsafe, unstable, unsteady, wobbly

2. Feeble in the joints; tottering.

   The rickety old man hardly managed to climb the stairs.

3. medicineAffected with or suffering from rickets; rachitic.