DESULTORY Synonyms: 94 Similar and Opposite Words

desultory

adjective

ˈde-səl-ˌtȯr-ē

Definition of desultory

as in random

lacking a definite plan, purpose, or pattern a desultory search for something of interest on TV

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in rambling

passing from one topic to another a desultory discussion about the news of the day

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 desultory Where Bonnie and Clyde glamorizes its couple and their crimes, Loden renders Wanda passive and desultory in the lawless turn her life has taken. — Air Mail, 23 May 2026 There'd be people sitting outside smoking, having desultory conversations, playing games. — Lale Arikoglu, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Mar. 2026 With all due respect to Swords and Holloway, Olson has taken the team on her back since Michigan’s desultory loss to Iowa last week. — Sabreena Merchant, New York Times, 2 Mar. 2026 Though desultory violence by remaining members of the group continued for years, the autumn of 1977 marked the climax of the violent campaigns of extremist left wing groups in the country. — Jason Burke, Time, 27 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for desultory

Recent Examples of Synonyms for desultory

Adjective

At Aventura concerts, random concert goers are often brought to the stage to perform the Don Omar part.

— Lars Brandle, Billboard, 1 Oct. 2026
Sign up for our weekly newsletter Proof Positive How does a coherent structure emerge from many small random occurrences?

— Manon Bischoff, Scientific American, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of random

Adjective

After the event was disrupted by an armed intruder, the Administration and the association scheduled a July do-over, where Trump delivered a rambling speech indulging seemingly every tangent that sprang to mind, but his contempt remained apparent.

— Jelani Cobb, New Yorker, 27 Sep. 2026
The rambling result is friendly and approachable—a one-level house with plenty of room for entertaining guests, as well as thoughtful steal-away spaces for catching your breath.

— Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of rambling

Adjective

Monday in Philadelphia stays cool and unsettled, with the front stalled just south of the region and scattered rain chances, especially across southeastern Pennsylvania, South Jersey and Delaware.

— Andrew Kozak, CBS News, 21 Sep. 2026
The scattered pieces of the former storm will likely drift over the Caribbean and soak Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Hispaniola with a few inches of rain, some of which will reach Florida.

— Alex Harris, Miami Herald, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of scattered

Adjective

Johnny JeanBaptiste, 36, and Stacia McMillian, 32, were charged with one count of child neglect without great bodily harm after deputies responded to the report of the wandering toddler, officials said.

— Felix Rodriguez, The Orlando Sentinel, 27 Sep. 2026
Cleveland also presumed rightly that Kiffin’s professional wandering eye meant the pairing was destined for a bad ending.

— Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 14 Sep. 2026

Definition of wandering

Adjective

The 2-1 decision rejected Anthropic’s argument that the Department of Defense’s ban on its Claude models was arbitrary, unauthorized and unconstitutional.

— Ashley Capoot, CNBC, 25 Sep. 2026
He was convicted of four counts of war crimes including murder, torture, cruel treatment and arbitrary detention.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 17 Sep. 2026

Definition of arbitrary

Adjective

Within this region are two major neural pathways, known as the direct and indirect pathways, which appear to exert opposing influences over which actions are expressed.

— Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 28 Sep. 2026
Fabbrica, officials said, is an indirect subsidiary of a global construction company headquartered in Italy.

— Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 26 Sep. 2026

Definition of indirect

Adjective

Cage has answered with the impulsive, erratic, and frenzied style now allegorized in Spider-Noir as Reilly’s inner monster.

— Harmon Siegel, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026
As his erratic behavior continued, police began to suspect that Randolph had hired Miller to kill Causse, but double crossed him to avoid payment.

— CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of erratic

Adjective

The prolific, award-winning British author’s novels are often plotless, discursive and frustratingly obtuse.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug. 2026
And yet this metafictional doubling—in which people appear simultaneously as themselves and with a set of fictional flourishes—has the side effect of undermining the discursive conceit of the text.

— Maya Binyam, New Yorker, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of discursive

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desultorily

desultory

detach

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“Desultory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desultory. Accessed 4 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of desultory

adjective

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