in rag order

English

Prepositional phrase

in rag order

1. (UK, Ireland, military, slang) In a state of mess or chaos.
   • 2003, Donal Ruane, Tales in a Rearview Mirror, page 80:

     He looks to be in rag order, one hand on the wall to hold himself up, the other one on his trousers, to hold them up by the looks of it. It's fairly cold out and he's making slow progress to wherever he's headed.

   • 2009, Julian Beirne, Diary of a Sapper, page 289:

     We took over the plant in rag order but had to hand it over as per BAOR standards. So light bulbs that weren't working on the dashboard had to be replaced, an A type job, or Operator job.

   • 2019, Roddy Doyle, Charlie Savage:

     Our parents left the world in reasonably good shape but I've a horrible feeling we'll be leaving it in rag order. And I'm in rag order, myself. I'm halfway down the stairs in the morning before I'm convinced that I'm awake, that I'm actually alive.