patchy

Definition of patchynext

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of patchy With low vaccination rates in their community and patchy coverage in Mexico at large, that measles case translated into a national outbreak. Katie Silver, NPR, 28 Mar. 2026 Kay visited a university snow observing site in the Rockies this week and found only patchy, slushy snow cover that was melting rapidly. Andrew Freedman, CNN Money, 27 Mar. 2026 Some patchy inland fog was also possible, mainly across the interior and over on the southwestern coast of Florida. Lissette Gonzalez, CBS News, 24 Mar. 2026 With the same concept as an exfoliating serum for your face—tackling hyperpigmentation, sloughing off patchy texture, controlling acne, and improving overall skin tone—exfoliation has gone full body with everything from sprays to buffing bars and serums. Conçetta Ciarlo, Vogue, 23 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for patchy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for patchy
Adjective
  • The state Department of Corrections is in strikingly similar dire straits with dilapidated prisons and a decreasing number of COs.
    Steve Zeidman, New York Daily News, 2 Apr. 2026
  • Ross saved the Miami Open, moving it from a dilapidated Key Biscayne venue, and retrofitting Hard Rock Stadium’s grounds for it.
    Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 24 Mar. 2026
Adjective
  • Actress Letitia Wright attended a Prada event in a faded denim and leather jacket.
    Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 31 Mar. 2026
  • That fall, an old friend reached out to my father through the underground communications network, dialling a number printed on a faded piece of plastic Dymo tape and speaking to him from a public phone booth.
    Zayd Ayers Dohrn, New Yorker, 28 Mar. 2026
Adjective
  • All sizes of Raw Farm block and shredded cheese packages.
    Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 27 Mar. 2026
  • Spread a couple of inches of damp bedding material, such as peat moss, shredded paper, or good old-fashioned dirt, in the bottom of the container.
    Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
  • Talking Heads played their first gig in June, 1975, opening for the Ramones at CBGB, a rock club on a mangy block in the East Village.
    Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 10 Nov. 2025
  • That also includes Leonard, a dapper old parrot who lives in the clinic, and Bitchy, a mangy, rangy alley cat who recently wandered into the office and took up residence.
    Duante Beddingfield, Freep.com, 30 July 2025
Adjective
  • What was once two city blocks of dingy industrial warehouses is now an alluring complex of stores, cafes, artist studios and event space meant to attract Fort Lauderdale’s burgeoning population of young professionals and South Floridians willing to drive from Miami and West Palm Beach.
    Amanda Rosa, Sun Sentinel, 27 Mar. 2026
  • After renting a dingy, Alvarez uploaded an image of the lobster’s release.
    Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 25 Mar. 2026
Adjective
  • Goma is married as a 7-year-old to a decrepit 70-year-old man.
    Jessica Vantine Birkenholtz, The Conversation, 24 Mar. 2026
  • The island’s decrepit power system uses aging thermal power plants from the former Soviet Union.
    Janet Loehrke, USA Today, 18 Mar. 2026
Adjective
  • For example, receive a new pair of socks, finally throw away that extra holey pair hiding in the back of the drawer.
    Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 5 Jan. 2026
  • That’s thanks to a quirk of South Florida’s geology, where the entire region is perched on holey rock that does little to stop the rise of groundwater, which Sukop’s research has shown is rising on pace with sea level.
    Susan Merriam, Miami Herald, 12 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • Displays of it, particularly in architecture or public art, are often perceived as tacky, kitschy or, heaven forbid, nouveau riche.
    Culture Critic, Los Angeles Times, 1 Apr. 2026
  • The formula isn’t sticky or tacky.
    Catharine Malzahn, Glamour, 18 Mar. 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Patchy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/patchy. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.

More from Merriam-Webster on patchy

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster