English vocabulary · C1
Desultory
/ˈdɛsəlˌtɔːri/ · adj.
Desultory describes doing things with no real plan. You jump from task to task and never finish.
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Example sentences
- His reading was desultory, jumping book to book.
- The team's desultory effort lost the game.
Word origin and roots
from Latin
- de — away (from Latin)
- sul — leap (from Latin)
Synonyms and nuances
- RANDOM — happening without a plan (No Clear Order)
- SCATTERED — spread in many directions (Spread All Over)
- HALFHEARTED — done with little real effort (Low Effort, No Focus)
Words with the same root
salire — to leap
- assault — a sudden attack on someone
- result — a thing that happens because of something else
Lesson notes
Desultory describes doing things with no real plan. You jump from task to task and never finish.
Related: random, scattered, halfhearted. Use Desultory when effort has no plan.
His reading was desultory, jumping book to book. The team's desultory effort lost the game.
From Latin. de- means away. sul- means leap. Jumping from one thing to another — that is desultory.