as in dilapidated
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Recent Examples of patchy
Flight prices vary widely depending on group size and availability—but Angola’s patchy road infrastructure (or lack thereof) is not for the faint of heart, so plan accordingly.
—
Samantha Falewée, Travel + Leisure, 30 Apr. 2026
But, right now, most employer plans offer pretty patchy coverage of GLP-1s.
—Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 24 Apr. 2026
Inside, the rooms look as old as the exterior, but in an open, unfussily modern way, with wide, wooden floorboards from old growth trees and patchy plaster walls.
—Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 23 Apr. 2026
With demand outpacing the availability of providers, wait times can stretch for months or even years, depending on the procedure, while insurance coverage is patchy and confusing.
—Theresa Gaffney, STAT, 20 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for patchy
Samantha Falewée, Travel + Leisure, 30 Apr. 2026
But, right now, most employer plans offer pretty patchy coverage of GLP-1s.
—Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, semafor.com, 24 Apr. 2026
Inside, the rooms look as old as the exterior, but in an open, unfussily modern way, with wide, wooden floorboards from old growth trees and patchy plaster walls.
—Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 23 Apr. 2026
With demand outpacing the availability of providers, wait times can stretch for months or even years, depending on the procedure, while insurance coverage is patchy and confusing.
—Theresa Gaffney, STAT, 20 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for patchy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for patchy
Adjective
-
Zaragoza stationed his men on the high ground, hidden behind cacti, behind walls of dilapidated forts, in ditches.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
4 May 2026
-
Longtime Oak Lawn Village Board member Timothy Desmond has resigned from his post to enter into a contract with the village through his home building company to restore dilapidated properties, with the goal of putting them back on the tax rolls.—
Olivia Stevens,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
When deadheading, cut where the blossom's stem joins the rest of the plant—in other words, remove not only the faded flower, but the tiny stem attached to it as well.—
Samantha Johnson,
Martha Stewart,
10 May 2026
-
Next to the dog, a faded print of Big Ben, and a commemorative plate with the late Queen Elizabeth II smiling from nine different decades.—
Jenn Harris,
Los Angeles Times,
4 May 2026
Adjective
-
Discarded clothing continues to arrive in this city, where it’s sorted, shredded and rewoven before re-entering global supply chains.—
Ayushi Shah,
CNN Money,
9 May 2026
-
The graham cracker crust is sprinkled with layers of chocolate chips, pecans, and shredded coconut.—
Mary Shannon Wells,
Southern Living,
8 May 2026
Adjective
-
To write, especially in a first draft, is to submit myself to the mangy, cackling glory of not knowing.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 Apr. 2026
-
Talking Heads played their first gig in June, 1975, opening for the Ramones at CBGB, a rock club on a mangy block in the East Village.—
Amanda Petrusich,
New Yorker,
10 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Here, the band went further, using Sphere’s state-of-the-art environs to imagine itself back in a dingy club or student union.—
Mikael Wood,
Los Angeles Times,
7 May 2026
-
That dingy look creeping across the screens and settling on every surface?—
Lauren Jarvis-Gibson,
Miami Herald,
27 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Calt had a love-hate relationship with decrepit blues genius Skip James and most likely himself.—
The Week US,
TheWeek,
4 May 2026
-
Trees grew on the roof of the Polissya Hotel, which once housed nuclear scientists; at the Palace of Culture Energetik in the city’s center, frozen rain collected inside of a decrepit swimming pool.—
Lizzie Johnson,
New Yorker,
25 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
For example, receive a new pair of socks, finally throw away that extra holey pair hiding in the back of the drawer.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
5 Jan. 2026
-
That’s thanks to a quirk of South Florida’s geology, where the entire region is perched on holey rock that does little to stop the rise of groundwater, which Sukop’s research has shown is rising on pace with sea level.—
Susan Merriam,
Miami Herald,
12 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Her dress, makeup, hair and nails are tacky!—
Essence,
Essence,
11 May 2026
-
Canned frosting tends to be pretty stiff, thick, and tacky.—
Riley Wofford,
Martha Stewart,
7 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Patchy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/patchy. Accessed 14 May. 2026.
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