1
as in messy
lacking neatness in dress or person
a sloppy child who always seems to have spilled something on his clothes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in chaotic
lacking in order, neatness, and often cleanliness
dumped the papers in a sloppy pile on the desk
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in sentimental
appealing to the emotions in an obvious and tiresome way
a cinematic romance with a sloppy musical score that will have audiences reaching for their handkerchiefs
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 sloppy
The Loch Haven Park museum will get sloppy on May 9 and 10.
—
Dewayne Bevil, The Orlando Sentinel, 1 May 2026
Brandon Lowe hit his eighth homer for Pittsburgh, which played sloppy defense behind Skenes to head into May with its promising start to the season in danger of slipping away.
—CBS News, 30 Apr. 2026
The on-trend, wide-leg silhouette gives them a relaxed feel without looking sloppy.
—Chaise Sanders, Travel + Leisure, 30 Apr. 2026
But the Pistons were sloppy with the ball and careless overall in a 94-88 loss to the Orlando Magic on Monday night, falling behind 3-1 in their first-round Eastern Conference series.
—ABC News, 28 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sloppy
Dewayne Bevil, The Orlando Sentinel, 1 May 2026
Brandon Lowe hit his eighth homer for Pittsburgh, which played sloppy defense behind Skenes to head into May with its promising start to the season in danger of slipping away.
—CBS News, 30 Apr. 2026
The on-trend, wide-leg silhouette gives them a relaxed feel without looking sloppy.
—Chaise Sanders, Travel + Leisure, 30 Apr. 2026
But the Pistons were sloppy with the ball and careless overall in a 94-88 loss to the Orlando Magic on Monday night, falling behind 3-1 in their first-round Eastern Conference series.
—ABC News, 28 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sloppy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sloppy
Adjective
-
Pfizer outbid Novo Nordisk for Metsera in a messy M&A fight last year that involved dueling lawsuits and anticompetitive claims.—
Rohan Goswami,
semafor.com,
7 May 2026
-
While mixtures of two or three metals were messy and unstable, the five-metal combination paradoxically self-organized into a single, uniform product, streamlining 31 possible chemical outcomes into a single, precise nanocrystal.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
7 May 2026
Adjective
-
The chaotic family life was cited when Cary Stayner pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to the tourists’ murders; he was found mentally fit to stand trial.—
Bay Area News Group,
Mercury News,
4 May 2026
-
The start turned chaotic in seconds when Verstappen, who along with Leclerc almost immediately passed Antonelli, proceeded to completely pirouette, recovering but quickly finding himself in ninth.—
Viju Mathew,
Robb Report,
4 May 2026
Adjective
-
Strout is not a sentimental writer.—
Chris Hewitt,
Boston Herald,
10 May 2026
-
One mom also said that her daughter asked for a sentimental and practical gift, namely a pretty diploma frame.—
Sian Babish,
PEOPLE,
9 May 2026
Adjective
-
And this is where the movie takes off from retro mythology to become its own slovenly mod thing.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
4 Mar. 2026
-
To Washington, a beard made a man look unkempt and slovenly, masking the higher emotions that civility required.—
Maurizio Valsania,
The Conversation,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Charmed at first, Nella soon becomes confused and suspicious of her alleged ally as their approaches to racial bias and diversity begin to sharply diverge and the story, told through a past and present timeline, unravels with unexpected twists.—
Laura Zigman,
PEOPLE,
2 May 2026
-
Westminster Mayor Chi Charlie Nguyen showed the new signage in a Facebook post that’s garnered more than 14,000 likes and comments combined — responses spanning from supportive and celebratory, to confused and inflammatory.—
Paris Barraza,
USA Today,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The worry looming over the economy Earlier this month, Dimon had also warned in his shareholder letter that the war in Iran risks oil and commodity price shocks that could keep inflation sticky and push interest rates higher than the market now expects.—
USA Today,
USA Today,
28 Apr. 2026
-
Apollo chief economist Torsten Slok has warned the combination of tariffs, sticky inflation, and slowing growth can create a stagflation-like setup, one that would be hostile to both markets and consumers.—
Tristan Bove,
Fortune,
28 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Yellowing leaves can indicate overwatering, while wrinkled leaves can point to underwatering.—
Madeline Buiano,
Martha Stewart,
8 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Then downstairs in the filthy little basement, where there's the stone butt carved into the wall, people knew exactly what to do.—
Matt Ortile,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 May 2026
-
Strong supports the closing of Men’s Central Jail and said the department needed to look at medical care, filthy living conditions and a lack of healthy food and clean water.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
1 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sloppy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sloppy. Accessed 10 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
