spotty

adjective

spot·​ty ˈspä-tē 

spottier; spottiest

1

: marked with spots : spotted

2

: lacking uniformity especially in quality

the performance was spotty

also : irregularly or sparsely distributed

spotty attendance

spotty data

spottily

ˈspä-tə-lē 

adverb

spottiness

ˈspä-tē-nəs 

noun

Synonyms of spotty

• sporadic
• intermittent
• occasional
• erratic

Examples of spotty in a Sentence

Her work has been spotty.

The service at that restaurant is a little spotty.

students with spotty attendance records

Recent Examples on the Web

Only spotty showers and storms are possible late in the day. —Cutter Martin, CBS News, 3 June 2026

Google began supporting Apple AirDrop on select devices earlier this year, but support has been spotty. —ArsTechnica, 2 June 2026

Joseph himself has acknowledged that opposing offenses have attacked his scheme with tight ends across the past two seasons, and Singleton and Strnad have both had spotty records covering TEs in space. —Luca Evans, Denver Post, 31 May 2026

Those roadblocks include confusing portals, privacy concerns, outdated devices, spotty internet and hard-to-follow health information. —Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 27 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for spotty

• dotty
• doughty
• draughty
• haughty
• knotty
• naughty
• potty
• scottie
• strati
• zloty
• basmati
• bharati

Kids Definition

spotty

adjective

spot·​ty ˈspät-ē 

spottier; spottiest

1

: having spots

2

: not always the same especially in quality

your work has been spotty

spottily

ˈspät-ᵊl-ē 

adverb

spottiness

ˈspät-ē-nəs 

noun