Most of the others also lit their pipes and a desultory conversation ensued.
Source: tatoeba (837366)
Desultory
//ˈdɛs.əlˌtɔɹ.i//
Synonyms for "desultory" (225 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Closest matches (45)
Strong matches (68)
disproportionatedizzyeccentricepisodicerranterraticexcursivefast and looseficklefitfulflickeringflickeryflickyflightyflittingfluctuatingflutteringflutteryformlessfreakish
Show 46 more words
frivolousgiddygratuitousgutteringhaltinghaphazardhazardousherky-jerkyheteroclitehit-or-missimmethodicalimpetuousimpulsiveinchoateincoherentinconsistentinconstantindecisiveindirectindiscriminateinfirminsecureinsubstantialintermittentintermittingirregularirresoluteirresponsiblejerkylabyrinthinelooselurchingmaunderingmazymeanderingmeaninglessmercurialmisshapenmoodynonsymmetricalnonsystematicnonuniformon-again-off-againorderlessout-of-the-waypatchy
Adjective(2 words)
Related words (112)
perilousplanetaryplanlessprecariouspromiscuousprovisionalramblingrandomrestlessriskyroughrovingscatterbrainedscrappysenselessserpentineshakyshapelessshiftingshifty
Show 88 more words
shufflingslapdashslipperysnakysnatchyspasmaticspasmicspasmodicspasticspinelesssplutteringsporadicspottysputteringsputterystaggeringstragglingstragglystrayswervingsystemlesstemporarytentativeticklishtreacherousturningtwistingunaccountableunarrangeduncertainunclassifiedunconsidereduncontrolledundependableundirectedundisciplinedunequalunevenunfaithworthyunfixedungradedunjoinedunmethodicalunmetricalunorderedunorganizedunplannedunpredictableunregularunreliableunrestrainedunrhythmicalunsettledunsolidunsortedunsoundunstableunstable as waterunstaidunsteadfastunsteadyunsubstantialunsureunsymmetricalunsystematicuntrustworthyununiformvacillatingvagrantvaguevariableveeringvicissitudinaryvicissitudinousvolatilewanderingwantonwaveringwaverywavywaywardwhimsicalwindingwishy washywishy-washywobblingwobblyzigzag
Adjective(4 words)
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
Synonyms
1 entriesRelated terms
1 entriescoordinate
4 entriesderived
2 entriesrelated to
9 entriessimilar
2 entriesTranslations
37 translations across 15 languages.
Bulgarian
3 entries- безреден adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
- безсистемен adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
- разхвърлян adj (leaping or skipping about)
Chinese Cantonese
1 entries- 散漫嘅 adj (disappointing in performance or progress)
Czech
2 entries- nesouvislý adj (out of course; by the way; not connected with the subject)
- roztěkaný adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
Dutch
1 entries- onsamenhangend adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
German
2 entries- sprunghaft adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
- unzusammenhängend adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
Hungarian
4 entries- felületes adj (out of course; by the way; not connected with the subject)
- kapkodó adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
- odavetett adj (out of course; by the way; not connected with the subject)
- rendszertelen adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
Latvian
1 entries- nesakarīgs adj (out of course; by the way; not connected with the subject)
Māori
1 entries- paihore adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
Norwegian
2 entries- malapropos adj (out of course; by the way; not connected with the subject)
- springende adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
Polish
3 entries- bezładny adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
- chaotyczny adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
- nieporządny adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
Portuguese
1 entries- desultório adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
Russian
3 entries- беспорядочный adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
- несвязанный adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
- несвязный adj (out of course; by the way; not connected with the subject)
Serbo-Croatian
4 entries- nepovezan adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
- nepovezan adj (out of course; by the way; not connected with the subject)
- nesuvisao adj (out of course; by the way; not connected with the subject)
- promašen adj (disappointing in performance or progress)
Spanish
3 entries- desganado adj (disappointing in performance or progress)
- incoherente adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
- inconexo adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
Ukrainian
4 entries- безладний adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
- недоладний adj (out of course; by the way; not connected with the subject)
- непов'язаний adj (out of course; by the way; not connected with the subject)
- хаотичний adj (jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order or rational connection)
Sample sentences
13 total sentences available.
His studies are very desultory and eccentric, but he has amassed a lot of out-of-the-way knowledge which would astonish his professors.
Source: tatoeba (6289684)
The conversation had roamed in a desultory spasmodic fashion from golf clubs to the causes of the change in the obliquity of the ecliptic.
Source: tatoeba (7043874)
He wandered round, cleaning up in a desultory way.
Source: wiktionary
Showing 4 of 13 available sentences.
Keep exploring
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.