отре́пье

rare #42366

nounneuterinanimatecountable

1.
rags, tatters, tattered clothes
Он ходи́л по го́роду в како́м-то отре́пье.
He walked around town in some kind of rags.
Collective neuter noun; usually used with no plural.
2.
riffraff, scum, rabble, dregs
Э́та пья́ная компа́ния — настоящее отре́пье.
That drunken bunch is real scum.
Figurative and strongly pejorative.
3.
(rare) flax waste, towtextiles
Отре́пье льна собира́ли в мешки́.
The flax waste was collected in sacks.
Original technical meaning; now largely obsolete.

Examples

От прежней одежды остались одни отрепья.
All that remained of the old clothes was a pile of rags.
На нищем были только грязные отрепья.
The beggar was wearing nothing but filthy rags.
Он ходил по улицам в старых отрепьях.
He walked the streets in old rags.