From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary EnglishRelated topics: Naturepatchypatch‧y /ˈpætʃi/ adjective1DNSEPARATEhappening or existing in some areas but not in others
patchy fog2COMPLETEnot complete enough to be useful
His knowledge of French remained pretty patchy.
There is only patchy evidence of the animal’s existence.3especially British EnglishBAD good in some parts but bad in others
I thought the performance was patchy. —patchiness noun [uncountable]Examples from the Corpuspatchy• The auditorium itself was rather similar, brown-walled and patchy.• My knowledge of the subject is prettypatchy.• The grass looked pretty patchy.• Pre-election nerves in the City last week left the performance of the remaining 10 Questor Selection shares looking distinctly patchy.• The records are patchy and incomplete.• The enamel has peeled off the taps like so much bananaskin, revealingdull, patchybrass.• The film is patchy, despite one or two good performances.• Thickercloud will bring patchydrizzle over north-west-facing coasts and hills.• patchyevidence• A patchypicture begin to emerge of what happened that night.• This is ideal for weatheredstone and patchyplaster.• Many departmentstores reported patchysales over Christmas.• Since this evidence is patchy, the chapter also begins to identify areas in which futureresearch seems important.
