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
My identity, too, felt indeterminate in this desultory period between separation and divorce.
—
Terry Nguyen
july 23, Literary Hub, 23 July 2025
But the Delgados are somehow worse in their desultory family dramas, with the useless Xavier trying to prove himself to Reuben, and Isabella adopting a baby aquilops, a series of sitcom story lines dropped into the jungle.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 30 June 2025
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
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
Terry Nguyen
july 23, Literary Hub, 23 July 2025
But the Delgados are somehow worse in their desultory family dramas, with the useless Xavier trying to prove himself to Reuben, and Isabella adopting a baby aquilops, a series of sitcom story lines dropped into the jungle.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 30 June 2025
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
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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Rumors have swirled that Jaramillo was at the center of an ambush or that his murder was part of planned retribution, but Cordero-Stutz reaffirmed that his death was a random encounter that could have happened to any deputy that day.—
Devoun Cetoute,
Miami Herald,
8 Nov. 2025
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This is the random bunch of misfits Courteney will have to transform into a team competitive enough to make it to nationals, and that will surely start to form one big family along the way.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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The Gerbi family also controls the trendy Paris retailer Merci, a rambling concept shop that opened in 2009 with a charitable mission.—
Samantha Conti,
Footwear News,
5 Nov. 2025
-
Kiley, 40, a Republican, is in his second term representing a rambling district that stretches from the northeastern Sacramento suburbs, through Placer and nearby counties and down to Death Valley.—
David Lightman,
Sacbee.com,
5 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Its fractured, scattered form, grasping for structure instead of pretending to master it, is an attempt to build a future that will include both author and reader.—
Robert Rubsam,
The Atlantic,
1 Jan. 2026
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On Sunday, rain will pick up across the Midwest from Kansas and Missouri through Ohio and Pennsylvania while scattered thunderstorms are possible from Arkansas up to Ohio, with some possibly strong enough to bring gusty winds and maybe an isolated tornado.—
Kyle Reiman,
ABC News,
27 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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Right now, the only way to discover these wandering worlds is with the help of gravitational fields, which warp the fabric of spacetime.—
Charles Q. Choi,
Space.com,
2 Jan. 2026
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The children were completely free and wandering, no one hitting marks, just playing and just being.—
Gerrad Hall,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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The National Police has been repeatedly cited by national and international human rights organizations for excessive use of force, arbitrary detentions, and the mistreatment of protesters and civilians.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
6 Jan. 2026
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Critics say those distinctions are arbitrary and unfair, being based on outdated assumptions and bad science.—
Kevin Krause,
Dallas Morning News,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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From his own zone, Zadorov made a terrific indirect pass off the end boards behind the Seattle net that Pastrnak collected deep on the right wing.—
Steve Conroy,
Boston Herald,
7 Jan. 2026
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Aim to provide your hoya with at least six hours of indirect sunlight daily to ensure healthy growth and development.—
SJ McShane,
Martha Stewart,
7 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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These large waves can be erratic and unpredictable.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
7 Jan. 2026
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The addiction eventually took its toll, and Chase became more erratic and difficult to work with.—
Gillian Telling,
PEOPLE,
30 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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His palette is light, smudgy guitar textures and warm synths; his message, more gestural than discursive, is love and lust.—
Pitchfork,
Pitchfork,
4 Dec. 2025
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Set in the uneasy era between world wars, when shifts of all kinds are taking place — commercial radios sputtering to life, vaudeville theaters shutting down — Pynchon’s first novel in 12 years is a discursive comic pleasure.—
Emma Alpern,
Vulture,
2 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Desultory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desultory. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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