1
as in random
lacking a definite plan, purpose, or pattern
a desultory search for something of interest on TV
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in rambling
passing from one topic to another
a desultory discussion about the news of the day
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of desultory
But the Academy really didn’t go for Revolutionary Road, which received a Supporting Actor nod for Michael Shannon (back row, 11th from right) and desultory nominations for Art Direction and Costume Design but nothing for Winslet or her co-star Leonardo DiCaprio.
—
Zach Schonfeld, Vulture, 26 Feb. 2025
But by the early 1970s, he was ravaged by drug addiction, kicking off a cycle of spirals and comebacks and sporadic, desultory live appearances.
—Rob Tannenbaum, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2025
Aside from a refreshingly unresolved ending (with a brief appearance from the titular apparatus), The Kissing Booth 3 is a desultory conclusion to a mostly upbeat series.
—Josh Bell, Vulture, 13 Feb. 2025
Its most striking element is a tall glassy lobby that will provide a grand entrance from the new plaza, but the rest of the building is driven by functional massing that’s been sheathed with a desultory screen of metal and glass.
—Edward Keegan, Chicago Tribune, 26 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for desultory
Zach Schonfeld, Vulture, 26 Feb. 2025
But by the early 1970s, he was ravaged by drug addiction, kicking off a cycle of spirals and comebacks and sporadic, desultory live appearances.
—Rob Tannenbaum, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2025
Aside from a refreshingly unresolved ending (with a brief appearance from the titular apparatus), The Kissing Booth 3 is a desultory conclusion to a mostly upbeat series.
—Josh Bell, Vulture, 13 Feb. 2025
Its most striking element is a tall glassy lobby that will provide a grand entrance from the new plaza, but the rest of the building is driven by functional massing that’s been sheathed with a desultory screen of metal and glass.
—Edward Keegan, Chicago Tribune, 26 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for desultory
Recent Examples of Synonyms for desultory
Adjective
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Nicki Minaj was reportedly the target of a random swatting attack by someone who told police there had been a shooting at her Hidden Hills home.—
Mackenzie Cummings-Grady,
Billboard,
10 Apr. 2025
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As such, The Studio is shrill and talky, its chaotic scenes sparked by random performers like Charlize Theron, Zac Efron, Olivia Wilde and Sarah Polley, all of whom want something from Remick.—
Peter Bart,
Deadline,
10 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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In the early morning hours of Dec. 26, 1996, Patsy Ramsey called 911 to report her 6-year-old daughter JonBenét missing, and found a rambling ransom note left inside their Boulder, Colorado, home.—
Erin Moriarty,
CBS News,
20 Dec. 2024
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His statement came a day after the release of the Netflix series, which takes viewers back to the morning after Christmas 28 years ago, when JonBenét’s mother called 911 to report finding a rambling ransom note and her daughter missing.—
Elizabeth Chuck,
NBC News,
3 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The wandering pack needs more females for their new society and there are two females and two males inside the small cage.—
Chip Bell,
Forbes.com,
15 Apr. 2025
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The old man who, with his grandson, kept that wandering tradition alive that left many of the Aiel ready to abandon the path laid out for them.—
Sean T. Collins,
Vulture,
20 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Too many leaders seek to lead down by being authoritative, by pushing dictates on people and relentlessly driving forward toward arbitrary goals and deadlines.—
Andrew Deutscher,
Forbes.com,
9 Apr. 2025
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The responses, submitted by a fairly arbitrary group of women, range from profound to half-hearted.—
Anna Wiener,
New Yorker,
9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The Iranians reportedly agreed to engage in indirect talks with the U.S., through mediators in Oman.—
Raja Krishnamoorthi,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Apr. 2025
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However, one method is direct and the other is indirect.—
Jenny Van Leeuwen Harrington,
CNBC,
8 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The cuts would devastate weather and climate research as weather is becoming more erratic, extreme and costly.—
Ella Nilsen,
CNN Money,
11 Apr. 2025
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Wall Street has been in an erratic yo-yo pattern since Donald Trump announced, held off, implemented, augmented, and paused worldwide tariffs.—
Lieke ten Brummelhuis,
Forbes.com,
10 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Set entirely in Linda’s Manhattan apartment, the film freely and imaginatively recreates that long-ago afternoon and the wonderfully discursive exchange between these two singular individuals.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
4 Feb. 2025
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There’s a discursive ramble about ordering Chinese food that takes on a strange power.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
27 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Desultory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desultory. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
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