Synonyms of scattered

scattered 1 of 2

adjective

as in random

lacking a definite plan, purpose, or pattern

a hodgepodge of scattered ideas that didn't add up to a clear hypothesis

Synonyms & Similar Words

• random
• arbitrary
• stray
• erratic
• sporadic
• haphazard
• lucky
• aimless
• accidental
• contingent
• casual
• desultory
• odd
• hit-or-miss
• irregular
• chance
• slapdash
• helter-skelter
• catch-as-catch-can
• incidental
• disorganized
• spot
• inadvertent
• unconsidered
• scattershot
• shotgun
• unsystematic
• directionless
• unplanned
• unintended
• indiscriminate
• unintentional
• fortuitous
• unpremeditated
• purposeless
• undirected
• disorderly
• undiscriminating
• fluky
• chancy
• objectless
• unselective

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• systematic
• organized
• regular
• orderly
• fixed
• stable
• constant
• continuous
• regular
• steady
• arranged
• established
• even
• methodical
• systematized
• set
• nonrandom
• aware
• managed
• planned
• conscious
• ordered
• deliberate
• thoughtful
• purposeful
• orchestrated
• willful

scattered

2 of 2

verb

past tense of scatter

1

as in dispersed

to cause (members of a group) to move widely apart

the noise of the backfiring car scattered the pigeons

Synonyms & Similar Words

• dispersed
• dissipated
• isolated
• disbanded
• dispelled
• squandered
• segregated
• separated
• diffused
• cleared out
• disseminated
• split (up)
• parted
• spread
• broke up
• diverged

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• collected
• gathered
• concentrated
• assembled
• clustered
• congregated
• ingathered
• united
• unified
• agglutinated
• conglomerated

2

as in sprayed

to cover by or as if by scattering something over or on

the hillside was scattered with boulders deposited by the last ice age

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sprayed
• sprinkled
• dotted
• peppered
• strewed
• spotted
• bestrewed
• dusted
• sowed
• speckled
• drizzled
• flecked
• studded
• blanketed
• dappled
• spattered
• stippled
• bespattered

3

as in dissipated

to go off in different directions and cease to exist as a body or unified whole

these drunken revelers will quickly scatter when the police arrive

Synonyms & Similar Words

• dispersed
• dissipated
• disappeared
• faded
• dissolved
• disassembled
• divided
• evaporated
• separated
• spilled
• melted
• disbanded
• diverged
• forked
• fled
• went (away)
• branched (out)
• cleared
• broke up
• evanesced

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• gathered
• met
• congregated

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of scattered

Adjective

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

The right words can turn scattered details into a workable plan. — Tarot.com, The Orlando Sentinel, 27 Aug. 2026

The scattered rain on Tuesday morning was simply not widespread or heavy enough to provide meaningful relief for the ongoing fires or drought conditions. — Lauren Bostwick, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026

While scattered thunderstorms may provide temporary improvement in localized areas, smoke conditions are expected to remain variable over Lake Huron as winds shift. — Natalie Davies, Freep.com, 17 July 2026

The right conversation could turn scattered effort into a working plan. — Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 5 July 2026

If your data is messy, scattered or stale, the AI output fails. — Sagi Eliyahu, Forbes.com, 26 June 2026

At Mariposa Market in Willits, grocery items, wine bottles and other merchandise tumbled from shelves, leaving aisles littered with broken glass and scattered products. — Sofia Williams, Sacbee.com, 24 June 2026

March 21 – April 19 One direct message could turn scattered effort into actual teamwork. — Tarot.com, Sun Sentinel, 26 May 2026

Verb

Other bugs fell into the water under the bank of photovoltaic lights scattered around the lake, but mayflies coated the light posts and the lights themselves. — Bryan Hendricks, Arkansas Online, 6 Sep. 2026

Photos released by the center showed chunks of ceiling material, dust and debris scattered across the red carpet. — Anthony Thompson, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2026

The project team says that only about one photon in 10 trillion is Raman-scattered. — Elizabeth Howell, Space.com, 5 Sep. 2026

Friends told her that in the dining hall, where copies of the Review are often scattered like birdseed, some students were trashing the column. — Jesse Dougherty, New Yorker, 5 Sep. 2026

Storms will be scattered in the afternoon for this corridor but become more organized overnight, after midnight. — ABC News, 4 Sep. 2026

That knowledge lives in decades of institutional practice, scattered across subject matter experts and systems that were never designed to talk to each other. — Rohit Kapoor, Forbes.com, 4 Sep. 2026

There are water stations scattered throughout the grounds too. — Aaron Short, Curbed, 3 Sep. 2026

For Sacramento, the northern Sierra, and the lower Sacramento Valley, most of the showers will arrive Wednesday night and early Thursday — although they are expected to be weaker and more scattered. — Sean MacAday, Sacbee.com, 2 Sep. 2026