1
as in random
lacking a definite plan, purpose, or pattern
a desultory search for something of interest on TV
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in rambling
passing from one topic to another
a desultory discussion about the news of the day
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of desultory
The Stanley Cup-holding Florida Panthers got there with Friday night’s desultory 2-0 home loss to the Maple Leafs to put their second round series at 3-3.
—
Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 18 May 2025
Yet, the Raptors haven’t made the playoffs in the desultory East since 2022, when Philadelphia dispatched them in the first round.
—David Aldridge, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2025
Daniel Gordon’s film focused on the 100-meter final at the Seoul Olympics, a race that was dominated by Ben Johnson, who then abdicated the crown after a positive steroid test, leaving Carl Lewis as the desultory victor.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Mar. 2025
The desultory attention to regional conditions compromises the book’s conclusions and recommendations.
—Suzanne Maloney, Foreign Affairs, 10 Dec. 2019
See All Example Sentences for desultory
Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 18 May 2025
Yet, the Raptors haven’t made the playoffs in the desultory East since 2022, when Philadelphia dispatched them in the first round.
—David Aldridge, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2025
Daniel Gordon’s film focused on the 100-meter final at the Seoul Olympics, a race that was dominated by Ben Johnson, who then abdicated the crown after a positive steroid test, leaving Carl Lewis as the desultory victor.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Mar. 2025
The desultory attention to regional conditions compromises the book’s conclusions and recommendations.
—Suzanne Maloney, Foreign Affairs, 10 Dec. 2019
See All Example Sentences for desultory
Recent Examples of Synonyms for desultory
Adjective
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She is also banned for life from owning companion animals, is subject to random house visits, and has to pay a $150 fine, as well as restitution of just over $1,000 to the Clermont County Animal Shelter.—
Matthew Cupelli,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
4 Oct. 2025
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These patches are selected at random during construction, making each item even more unique and serving as a special tribute to Disney fans’ love of mystery items and pin collecting.—
Jessie Quinn,
StyleCaster,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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In the past several years, Edge had filed a string of civil lawsuits with rambling, sometimes conspiratorial claims.—
Zoe Sottile,
CNN Money,
28 Sep. 2025
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Kiehne was frustrated with the Joneses because the county government wouldn’t grade the dirt road up to his ranch, a rambling territory along the New Mexico border.—
Mitch Moxley,
Rolling Stone,
27 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The threat for heavy rain in South Florida is diminishing, however typical scattered thunderstorms with locally heavy downpours are still possible in the area through the weekend.—
Kyle Reiman,
ABC News,
13 Sep. 2025
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The result was a mile-long line that turned scattered craftwork into synchronized production.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
26 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Evening light spills across the pollinator gardens—alive with bees, hummingbirds, and the occasional wandering chicken—before dissolving into the shimmer of the Mackinac Bridge.—
Christine Chitnis,
Vogue,
24 Sep. 2025
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In tandem with our wandering, deeper and deeper goes our conversation.—
Paul Greenberg,
Time,
20 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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African telecom companies are often at the mercy of government agencies that order the shutdowns, but pressure from the international community could increase accountability and compel the companies to deny unlawful or arbitrary shutdown orders, the researchers argued.—
Alexander Onukwue,
semafor.com,
29 Sep. 2025
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But Trump’s arbitrary brand of interventionism comes with obvious dangers.—
John Cassidy,
New Yorker,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Some indirect impacts, such as dangerous waves and currents, are expected.—
Anna Skinner,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
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Direct and indirect stock holdings, including in mutual funds or retirement plans, accounted for an all-time high of 45% of households’ financial assets in the second quarter, according to Federal Reserve data.—
John Towfighi,
CNN Money,
28 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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On Saturday, his performance was erratic, with a mistake leading to the fifth goal scored by Antoine Griezmann.—
Guillermo Rai,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
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The tourism industry has had to adjust to fallout of tariffs, inflation and erratic gas prices.—
Carol Cain,
Freep.com,
27 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Written in the flush of a new friendship with co-producer, engineer, and musician Sam Weber, the album unspools a suite of folk miniatures riven with discursive melodies as evocative as the cultural ephemera dotted through the lyrics.—
Nina Corcoran,
Pitchfork,
29 Aug. 2025
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Kate Zambreno’s Animal Stories, the newest installment in the publisher’s Undelivered Lectures series, relates Nabokov’s anecdote as part of a searching, charmingly discursive meditation on zoos.—
Book Marks
August 28,
Literary Hub,
28 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Desultory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desultory. Accessed 5 Oct. 2025.
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