: in a hit-or-miss manner : haphazardly
Synonyms
Examples of hit-or-miss in a Sentence
Adverb
I was learning Spanish hit or miss, mostly just by hearing my friends speak it.
Recent Examples on the Web
Jackie Snow, Quartz, 26 Mar. 2024
The dream sequences, flashbacks and sidetracks don’t always succeed, and Torres’s absurdist humor is hit-or-miss.
—Ann Hornaday, Washington Post, 13 Mar. 2024
The Niners have been a hit-or-miss team the past two decades.
—Josh Dubow, USA TODAY, 24 Jan. 2024
The Indianapolis running game was hit-or-miss with Richardson out of the lineup last season.
—The Indianapolis Star, 17 Jan. 2024
Since then, it’s been pretty hit-or-miss with outcomes worse than flipping a coin over the past decade.
—Erik Kain, Forbes, 10 Feb. 2024
Despite its hit-or-miss fart jokes and problematic weight humor, the film surprises with its prosthetic artistry and heartwarming touch that goes beyond the ordinary comedy fare.
—James Mercadante, Ilana Gordon, EW.com, 22 Sep. 2023
Opinions, of course, will vary, but for me, the blend was a hit-or-miss affair.
—Chris Morris, Fortune, 17 Dec. 2023
As tech giants like Amazon and Apple warm up to the big screen and release movies in a traditional sense (each company is reportedly planning to invest $1 billion per year on theatrical films), that’s scrambling the idea of what is hit-or-miss at the box office.
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 7 Nov. 2023
Julie Evans, Parents, 12 Mar. 2024
Outside of Woods, the tight end position was hit or miss at times this season in terms of production.
—The Indianapolis Star, 10 Jan. 2024
But the Challenge eliminations are always hit or miss.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, 3 Jan. 2024
Pisces According to Nicole, two Pisces together can be hit or miss.
—Katie Mannion, Peoplemag, 18 Feb. 2024
Showers and storms probably pop up in the afternoon, but they should be hit or miss and generally quick-hitting.
—Ian Livingston, Washington Post, 24 June 2023
Meanwhile, accessory availability is hit or miss, too, with the Compute Module 4, for example, unavailable at Pi resellers as of this writing.
—Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 2 June 2023
It’s been really hit or miss, and mostly something that feels safe to ignore among more interesting games in the landscape.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2024
As for his accuracy in weather-predicting – Phil’s hit or miss.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 2 Feb. 2024
Adjective
Many of Adobe’s announcements aimed to provide more control and consistency for generative AI image creation, addressing a common challenge where the results can be hit-or-miss.
—Jackie Snow, Quartz, 26 Mar. 2024
The dream sequences, flashbacks and sidetracks don’t always succeed, and Torres’s absurdist humor is hit-or-miss.
—Ann Hornaday, Washington Post, 13 Mar. 2024
The Niners have been a hit-or-miss team the past two decades.
—Josh Dubow, USA TODAY, 24 Jan. 2024
The Indianapolis running game was hit-or-miss with Richardson out of the lineup last season.
—The Indianapolis Star, 17 Jan. 2024
Since then, it’s been pretty hit-or-miss with outcomes worse than flipping a coin over the past decade.
—Erik Kain, Forbes, 10 Feb. 2024
Despite its hit-or-miss fart jokes and problematic weight humor, the film surprises with its prosthetic artistry and heartwarming touch that goes beyond the ordinary comedy fare.
—James Mercadante, Ilana Gordon, EW.com, 22 Sep. 2023
Opinions, of course, will vary, but for me, the blend was a hit-or-miss affair.
—Chris Morris, Fortune, 17 Dec. 2023
As tech giants like Amazon and Apple warm up to the big screen and release movies in a traditional sense (each company is reportedly planning to invest $1 billion per year on theatrical films), that’s scrambling the idea of what is hit-or-miss at the box office.
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 7 Nov. 2023
Adverb
But Take Note The voice commands can be a hit or miss, depending on who gives the commands.
—Julie Evans, Parents, 12 Mar. 2024
Outside of Woods, the tight end position was hit or miss at times this season in terms of production.
—The Indianapolis Star, 10 Jan. 2024
But the Challenge eliminations are always hit or miss.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, 3 Jan. 2024
Pisces According to Nicole, two Pisces together can be hit or miss.
—Katie Mannion, Peoplemag, 18 Feb. 2024
Showers and storms probably pop up in the afternoon, but they should be hit or miss and generally quick-hitting.
—Ian Livingston, Washington Post, 24 June 2023
Meanwhile, accessory availability is hit or miss, too, with the Compute Module 4, for example, unavailable at Pi resellers as of this writing.
—Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 2 June 2023
It’s been really hit or miss, and mostly something that feels safe to ignore among more interesting games in the landscape.
—Paul Tassi, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2024
As for his accuracy in weather-predicting – Phil’s hit or miss.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 2 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hit-or-miss.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near hit-or-miss
Cite this Entry
“Hit-or-miss.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hit-or-miss. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share