HIT-AND-MISS Synonyms: 76 Similar and Opposite Words

hit-and-miss

adjective

Definition of hit-and-miss

as in haphazard

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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 hit-and-miss Drew Allar, Penn State Allar has prototypical size, tantalizing arm strength and… well, hit-and-miss production. — Parker Gabriel, Denver Post, 8 Apr. 2026 Alabama transfer Isaiah Bond was more hit-and-miss, and Oregon State’s Silas Bolden had little impact other than letting punts bounce for extra yards time after time. — Kirk Bohls, Houston Chronicle, 9 Mar. 2026 But overall, styling is hit-and-miss on this one in my humble opinion. — New Atlas, 4 Mar. 2026 And to say its fusillade of jokes is hit-and-miss would also be a charitable take. — Los Angeles Times, 27 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for hit-and-miss

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hit-and-miss

Adjective

Violent crime, once almost unknown on the island, is rising sharply—another sign of the state’s haphazard retreat.

— Will Freeman, Foreign Affairs, 17 Sep. 2026
With no clear guidance, haphazard and improvised efforts by companies to clean the homes left 6 in 10 residences still unsafe.

— Noah Haggerty, Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2026

Definition of haphazard

Adjective

Belting out random songs while delivering high-level physical comedy and acting takes skill.

— Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 15 Oct. 2026
Furthermore, the whiskers are in front, preventing the drone from detecting sideways obstacles like random jagged branches in a forest.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of random

Adjective

The extra software gimmicks, however, remain a bit hit-or-miss.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 22 Sep. 2026
The problem is that those splash plays and big weeks usually happen on fantasy benches because Shaheed is far too hit-or-miss (or miss or miss) to be counted on as more than a desperation play.

— Gary Davenport, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026

Definition of hit-or-miss

Adjective

More scattered showers and thunderstorms are expected on Wednesday afternoon.

— CBS News, CBS News, 7 Oct. 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

The film deals with an urban legend that a Nevada reservoir is a time portal, and the aimless group of teenage best friends who become obsessed with going back in history.

— Brent Lang, IndieWire, 24 Sep. 2026
Youth sports, once the redoubt of aimless childhood play, have become hopelessly commercialized.

— Nora Kenney Mittiga, Washington Post, 21 Sep. 2026

Definition of aimless

Adjective

Sixty or so people formed a desultory circle in front of the birds or slumped on bleachers hung with a banner that read the world is watching.

— J. B. MacKinnon, Harpers Magazine, 22 Sep. 2026
Can anything more than the most desultory gesture at a novel emerge while these questions go unanswered?

— Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2026

Definition of desultory

Adjective

But labor campaigners said in the statement that their wage demand wasn’t arbitrary.

— Jasmin Malik Chua, Footwear News, 8 Oct. 2026
The initiative has not yet produced a universal virtual cell capable of accurately predicting arbitrary biological responses.

— Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of arbitrary

Adjective

Valdes, who was turning 28, was killed by a stray bullet fired by police in the early morning hours of June 14, 2025, outside a Wynwood nightclub.

— Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 9 Oct. 2026
The boy who was paralyzed was about a block and a half from where the shooting erupted and was unlocking a Lime scooter when the stray bullet hit him, according to the court documents.

— ABC News, ABC News, 8 Oct. 2026

Definition of stray

Browse Nearby Words

hit

hit-and-miss

hit-and-run

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“Hit-and-miss.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hit-and-miss. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of hit-and-miss

adjective

Example Sentences

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