[Vocabulary] He is a messy boy/man/person

[englishhobby]

Can I say so about a person whose room is always a mess (with things scattered around)?

 

[MikeNewYork]

Can I say so about a person whose room is always a mess (with things scattered around)?

Not really. Calling someone a "messy person" implies that characteristic is true in all aspects of his life. A person can have an organized office and be an impeccable dresser while having a messy room in his house.

 

[englishhobby]

Not really. Calling someone a "messy person" implies that characteristic is true in all aspects of his life. A person can have an organized office and be an impeccable dresser while having a messy room in his house.

Is there a colloquial word for "disorganised" then (to use it instead of "messy")?
And can one use messy about a person to describe his appearance at a particular moment with the meaning "not clean or tidy"? E.g. You look so messy (after the cleaning). :?:

 

[emsr2d2]

I think the chances are that someone who has a messy room probably does also have a messy work desk etc so I have no problem calling them a messy person.

 

[MikeNewYork]

I think the chances are that someone who has a messy room probably does also have a messy work desk etc so I have no problem calling them a messy person.

I always had a perfectly organized desk and some messy rooms.

 

[englishhobby]

I always had a perfectly organized desk and some messy rooms.

There is a kind of mess, especially on one's desk which we call in my language "working mess" (when the books and papers you need to do some particular work are scattered on your desk, but you need each of them every minute (or hour), so you couldn't do without this "mess" to do the work). This expression "justifies" mess a little, it's a kind of "good mess" (I have this kind of mess on my desk at the moment ;-)). Do you have some word to describe this kind of mess?

 

[emsr2d2]

There is a kind of mess, especially on one's desk which we call in my language "working mess" (when the books and papers you need to do some particular work are scattered on your desk, but you need each of them every minute (or hour), so you couldn't do without this "mess" to do the work). This expression "justifies" mess a little, it's a kind of "good mess" (I have this kind of mess on my desk at the moment ;-)). Do you have some word to describe this kind of mess?

Organised chaos.