spottier; spottiest
2
: lacking uniformity especially in quality
the performance was spotty
also
: irregularly or sparsely distributed
spotty attendance
spotty data
Synonyms
Examples of spotty in a Sentence
Her work has been spotty.
The service at that restaurant is a little spotty.
students with spotty attendance records
Recent Examples on the Web
Plus, Tatum, who played long minutes well into June, during the Celtics’ championship run, had a few rough games during the U.S. team’s spotty exhibition rounds.
—
Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2024
Up until recently, tracking the history of Earth’s rainforests was complicated by a spotty fossil record.
—Riley Black, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 July 2024
But upgrades by states, cities and counties are spotty — generally happening in jurisdictions with deeper pockets.
—Mckenzie Beard, Washington Post, 16 July 2024
An analyst thinks the tech giant may add cameras to its AirPod earphones by 2026 in an effort to bolster spotty sales of its Vision Pro headset.
—Francisco Velasquez, Morgan Haefner, Quartz, 2 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for spotty 
Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2024
Up until recently, tracking the history of Earth’s rainforests was complicated by a spotty fossil record.
—Riley Black, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 July 2024
But upgrades by states, cities and counties are spotty — generally happening in jurisdictions with deeper pockets.
—Mckenzie Beard, Washington Post, 16 July 2024
An analyst thinks the tech giant may add cameras to its AirPod earphones by 2026 in an effort to bolster spotty sales of its Vision Pro headset.
—Francisco Velasquez, Morgan Haefner, Quartz, 2 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for spotty
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spotty.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near spotty
Cite this Entry
“Spotty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spotty. Accessed 19 Aug. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
spotty
adjective
spot·ty
ˈspät-ē 
spottier; spottiest
1
: having spots
2
: not always the same especially in quality
your work has been spotty
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