as in scattered
lacking a definite plan, purpose, or pattern
since we were new in town, our choice of a vet for our dog was entirely random
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of random
Mugs on your bedside table, random forks on the kitchen table—gather them all and pile them in there.
—
Jenna Ryu, SELF, 1 Apr. 2026
There has been a random bright spot in the past two decades of misery, though.
—Ben Church, CNN Money, 1 Apr. 2026
Police Chief DiPersio said that the attack was not random.
—Riley Rourke, CBS News, 1 Apr. 2026
The stabbing appeared to be a random act, with detectives saying the victim and suspect did not know each other and had no previous interactions.
—Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 1 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for random
Jenna Ryu, SELF, 1 Apr. 2026
There has been a random bright spot in the past two decades of misery, though.
—Ben Church, CNN Money, 1 Apr. 2026
Police Chief DiPersio said that the attack was not random.
—Riley Rourke, CBS News, 1 Apr. 2026
The stabbing appeared to be a random act, with detectives saying the victim and suspect did not know each other and had no previous interactions.
—Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 1 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for random
Recent Examples of Synonyms for random
Adjective
-
Earlier sunshine way to clouds and scattered rain as the first, in a series, of passing systems brings brief wet weather to Maryland.—
Cutter Martin,
CBS News,
20 Mar. 2026
-
And in legislative committees and in debate on Wednesday, sponsors of the new requirement didn’t cite evidence of more than scattered cases in which non-citizens may have voted.—
Anthony Man,
Sun Sentinel,
26 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
What’s to blame for all these arbitrary governing principles?—
Hershal Pandya,
Vulture,
30 Mar. 2026
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Black folks have seen the face of the US’s prerogative state—the side of the government that dispenses arbitrary jurisprudence, discriminatory law enforcement, and violence against those who challenge its authority and dominant ideologies.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
30 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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While Boston shot 5-for-20 in the period, Atlanta went 13-for-19, including the second made three of the night from the typically erratic Dyson Daniels.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
31 Mar. 2026
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Two weeks later, the erratic nature of the Wild’s play and the outcomes haven’t changed.—
Michael Russo,
New York Times,
30 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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In addition, for almost two years, his wife, Deltah, drove Henard to Childress every Tuesday for infusions of Keytruda, an immune checkpoint inhibitor used to prevent recurrence of disease by attacking stray cancer cells that may still be circulating in the body.—
Caleb Hellerman,
CNN Money,
29 Mar. 2026
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Atlanta police are searching for three suspects after a Campbellton Road shooting injured one man and sent a stray bullet through a school bus window, causing minor injuries to two children.—
CBS News Atlanta Staff,
CBS News,
29 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The latest data leak is potentially more damaging to Anthropic than the earlier accidental exposure of the company’s draft blog post about its forthcoming model.—
Beatrice Nolan,
Fortune,
31 Mar. 2026
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Each accidental catch potentially removes an animal that was alive before the Industrial Revolution.—
Samantha Agate,
Charlotte Observer,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Random.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/random. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
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