PATCHY Synonyms: 33 Similar and Opposite Words

patchy

adjective

Definition of patchy

as in dilapidated

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Dissimilar Words

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 patchy But domestic interpretations of international laws often vary, which can lead to patchy protection of human rights. — Mary Lind, The Conversation, 21 Oct. 2026 Meanwhile, the centre of defence is an uneven blend of the experienced Harry Maguire and raw prospects Leny Yoro and Heaven, while the two peak-age options, Martinez and Matthijs De Ligt, both have patchy fitness records. — Conor O'Neill, New York Times, 15 Oct. 2026 Below, find out exactly when to seed bare patches in the fall and how to fix your patchy lawn. — Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 15 Oct. 2026 As for the lows, sweater weather will officially arrive for Charlotte, with lows near 40 degrees this weekend, and a chance for patchy frost for out-lying areas, forecasters say. — Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 14 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for patchy

Recent Examples of Synonyms for patchy

Adjective

All of that came to a head aboard the dilapidated Honour 25, where a monthslong standoff came to a violent end last month.

— David Goldman, CNN Money, 29 Oct. 2026
Foreign buyers and investment funds have pushed up prices by buying Portuguese properties, including dilapidated buildings.

— ABC News, ABC News, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of dilapidated

Adjective

Investigators described him as a white male in his late 50s, with a scruffy, gray beard who was wearing a faded blue baseball cap.

— Dan Raby, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026
The landscape flowed in ridges and mountains of faded yellow and whisper pink, where welwitschia–large, low-lying plants that live to be hundreds of years old–sprawled like relics from a Dune film set.

— Samantha Falewée, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of faded

Adjective

Sighing taps and shredded roads The results of that decade of decline are everywhere.

— Ryan Lenora Brown, Christian Science Monitor, 5 Nov. 2026
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned consumers not to eat shredded iceberg lettuce from Taco Bell restaurants in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia.

— ABC News, ABC News, 3 Nov. 2026

Definition of shredded

Adjective

For some reason that has zero bearing on the plot, Digger loves his mangy cat and is determined to keep the ailing creature, half-blind and incontinent, alive at any cost.

— David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 29 Sep. 2026
Too mangy, too rangy, prowling in their bony elegance, leaping weightless from dangerously precarious mounds of sharp edges, peering yellow- eyed from shadows.

— Danielle Parker, CBS News, 21 May 2026

Definition of mangy

Adjective

Beware of Judy The film opens with Digger waking up to find his decrepit cat, Maggie, at death’s door.

— Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 7 Oct. 2026
Bumping along a rocky road to the island’s highest point, the officer – one hand on the wheel of his decrepit army truck – points to Eritrea and Djibouti across the water, on the African side of the strait.

— Nic Robertson, CNN Money, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of decrepit

Adjective

Have Cocktails at a Holiday Pop-Up Bar Trot out your tackiest (ahem, most festive) Christmas sweater for a night out at one of the metro’s many seasonal pop-up bars.

— Allison Yates, Midwest Living, 3 Nov. 2026
Knead in enough of the remaining bread flour to make a moderately soft and slightly tacky dough that is smooth and elastic (3 to 5 minutes total).

— Katlyn Moncada, Better Homes & Gardens, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of tacky

Browse Nearby Words

patchworks

patchy

pat down

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“Patchy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/patchy. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of patchy

adjective

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