spottily

adverb

Definition of spottilynext
as in intermittently

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for spottily
  1. intermittently
  2. fitfully
  3. unpredictably
  4. disjointedly
  5. fortuitously
  6. unconsciously
  7. inadvertently
  8. unwittingly
Adverb
  • Swallows—the country's most beloved and recognizable birds—darted past intermittently, a subtle but very real reminder of our location on this special stretch of the Algarve.
    — Megan Wilkes, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Khat is typically chewed like tobacco, with individuals retaining it in the cheek and chewing intermittently to release the active drug, which then produces stimulant-like effects.
    — Bryan Lynn, CBS News, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of intermittently
Adverb
  • Martin Filler The Met’s new Tristan und Isolde was a vocal triumph for Lise Davidsen and Michael Spyres, but Yuval Sharon’s staging only fitfully captured the essence of Wagner’s masterpiece.
    — The New York Review of Books, The New York Review of Books, 23 May 2026
  • That’s Duncan’s dilemma from the very beginning of this fitfully hilarious episode of The Audacity.
    — Scott Tobias, Vulture, 19 Apr. 2026
Definition of fitfully
Adverb
  • Youthful ambition bequeathed them unpredictably shifting time signatures, a daunting nylon-string intro, some odd musical shifts during the guitar-solo section, and a long list of other complexities.
    — Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Cloud spending, which grew unpredictably when the technology was new, can now be forecast using years of historical data.
    — Ameya Kanitkar, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of unpredictably
Adverb
  • The game ran poorly, crashed regularly, looked unremarkable, and drove disjointedly.
    — Adam Ismail, The Drive, 25 Mar. 2026
Definition of disjointedly
Adverb
  • And fortuitously, Napalm Death, who played a 19-minute set, espouse the same lefty politics as NPR, in fact maybe even a little more leftist, all things considered, since Barney Greenway wore a Crass T-shirt to the gig.
    — Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 15 July 2026
  • Dean Fleischer Camp directed the film, which was originally meant to stream on Disney+, but fortuitously, things changed and, in 2024, the film was given a theatrical release.
    — Angelique Jackson, Variety, 12 June 2026
Definition of fortuitously
Adverb
  • But in reality, of course, this is just happening almost unconsciously.
    — Jinae West, The Atlantic, 13 Aug. 2026
  • His opinion will be better received, and people will unconsciously be giving his appearance green flags and listening without any distraction.
    — Greg O'Keeffe, New York Times, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of unconsciously
Adverb
  • Krishna Karamkar jumped into floodwaters on July 19 when one of his two sons inadvertently fell into the overflowing Dikhow, which is a tributary of the Brahmaputra.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 18 Aug. 2026
  • But just as Dunham inadvertently evokes strong, sometimes delusional emotions in both her peers and the public, so does Portman.
    — Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of inadvertently
Adverb
  • Released by Bristol City after three seasons as a mainstay of their team in the second-tier Championship, the former Manchester United academy kid unwittingly found himself in limbo.
    — Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 16 Aug. 2026
  • But because Detroit chose the offer from the Los Angeles Dodgers, Skubal has unwittingly become a villain around the league.
    — Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of unwittingly
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.

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spotters
spottily
spotting
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Cite this Entry

“Spottily.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spottily. Accessed 26 Aug. 2026.

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