connect-the-dots
adjective
con·nect-the-dots
kə-ˈnekt-ṯẖə-ˈdäts 
: done or proceeding in a series of simple and usually predictable steps
a movie with a connect-the-dots plot
Examples of connect-the-dots in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The emerging big question is whether lower-income red state voters who benefit the most from federal actions will connect-the-dots between Trump’s chesty predictions and their own eroding living standards.
—
Mark Green, New York Daily News, 20 Apr. 2025
Ortenberg was an early champion of Moore, releasing in 2004 the Flint, Michigan firebrand’s Fahrenheit 9/11 — a connect-the-dots investigation of the George W. Bush presidency, the Iraq war, and corrupt wartime profiteering — which still stands as the highest-grossing documentary of all time.
—Chris Lee, Vulture, 20 Mar. 2025
That complex game of connect-the-dots may soon reveal a picture the Bears would rather not see — Johnson, with a Raiders ballcap on, readying to work beside Newmark and under the oversight of Las Vegas minority owner Tom Brady.
—Dan Wiederer, Chicago Tribune, 20 Jan. 2025
But Sir Ridley Scott does not want to deliver a connect-the-dots lecture.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 22 Nov. 2024
Silliphant’s screenplay works hard to maintain tensions through connect-the-dots plot construction.
—John H. Dorr, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 July 2024
The connect-the-dots legwork that allows a warped order to emerge from the chaos?
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 11 July 2024
This is a movie that plays connect-the-dots with exorcist/Catholic/addict themes.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 20 June 2024
Yeah, the Guinness Punch was one of the first connect-the-dots moments between Caribbean food and my identity.
—Jessica Carbone, Saveur, 29 Feb. 2024
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Mark Green, New York Daily News, 20 Apr. 2025
Ortenberg was an early champion of Moore, releasing in 2004 the Flint, Michigan firebrand’s Fahrenheit 9/11 — a connect-the-dots investigation of the George W. Bush presidency, the Iraq war, and corrupt wartime profiteering — which still stands as the highest-grossing documentary of all time.
—Chris Lee, Vulture, 20 Mar. 2025
That complex game of connect-the-dots may soon reveal a picture the Bears would rather not see — Johnson, with a Raiders ballcap on, readying to work beside Newmark and under the oversight of Las Vegas minority owner Tom Brady.
—Dan Wiederer, Chicago Tribune, 20 Jan. 2025
But Sir Ridley Scott does not want to deliver a connect-the-dots lecture.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 22 Nov. 2024
Silliphant’s screenplay works hard to maintain tensions through connect-the-dots plot construction.
—John H. Dorr, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 July 2024
The connect-the-dots legwork that allows a warped order to emerge from the chaos?
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 11 July 2024
This is a movie that plays connect-the-dots with exorcist/Catholic/addict themes.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 20 June 2024
Yeah, the Guinness Punch was one of the first connect-the-dots moments between Caribbean food and my identity.
—Jessica Carbone, Saveur, 29 Feb. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Connect-the-dots.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/connect-the-dots. Accessed 29 Apr. 2025.
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