patchily
/ˈpætʃəli/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈpætʃəli/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈpachə̇lē/ (ame, mw)
patchily — 副詞
1. spread or appearing in scattered spots rather than all over, with some areas cov
斑駁地
分布不均，有些地方有有些地方無
spread or appearing in scattered spots rather than all over, with some areas covered and others left empty.
The new paint was applied patchily across the bedroom wall, leaving bare spots near the corners.
新油漆在臥室牆上塗得斑駁不均，角落附近還露出沒上色的地方。
verb + patchily for uneven physical coverage
Fog hung patchily over the valley, thick above the river but clearing around João's farm.
霧零星地籠罩著山谷，河面上方很濃，但在 João 家的農場附近卻散開了。
describing uneven distribution across a landscape
Snow lay patchily on the hillside, gathering in the dips and melting where the sun touched it.
雪斑駁地覆蓋在山坡上，積在凹處，曬到太陽的地方就融化了。
Yael's beard grew in patchily, with thick clumps along the jaw and bare skin on the cheeks.
Yael 的鬍子長得很零星，下巴有幾撮濃密的，臉頰則是光滑無毛。
The mobile signal worked patchily inside the old stone church, dropping out behind the thick pillars.
在那座老石頭教堂裡，手機訊號時有時無，一走到厚柱子後面就斷掉。
- unevenly
broader; covers any uneven distribution, including thickness and timing, not just spotty coverage
- sporadically
stresses uneven occurrence over time more than across a surface
- spottily
near-synonym; slightly more informal, especially in American English
用法筆記
Subject is usually a physical substance, coverage, or signal that can be unevenly distributed across a surface or area. Distinguish from sense 2, which describes uneven quality of performance over time.
常見錯誤
2. showing very mixed quality — strong in some moments or sections and noticeably w
時好時壞
表現或品質前後不一致
showing very mixed quality — strong in some moments or sections and noticeably weak in others, like an essay that argues sharply in one paragraph and then loses its thread in the next.
Omar's first novel is written patchily, with brilliant chapters followed by long, dull stretches.
Omar 的第一本小說寫得時好時壞，精彩的章節之後常接著一大段沉悶的內容。
uneven quality across parts of one creative work
The young pianist played patchily during the recital, dazzling in the slow pieces but stumbling through the faster ones.
那位年輕鋼琴家在音樂會上彈得時好時壞，慢板令人驚艷，快板卻一直卡住。
performance with strong and weak moments side by side
Putri remembered the trip only patchily — a market in Hanoi, a boat ride, and very little else.
Putri 對那趟旅行的記憶斷斷續續，只記得河內的一個市場、一段船程，其他幾乎都想不起來。
Local trains run patchily on Sundays, with long gaps in the morning and a sudden rush after lunch.
週日的區間車班次很不穩定，早上空一大段時間，午餐後又突然密集起來。
Eve had been sleeping patchily for weeks, waking three or four times before her alarm finally rang.
Eve 已經斷斷續續地睡了好幾個星期，鬧鐘響之前總要醒個三、四次。
- unevenly
broader; covers uneven quality without the implication of distinct strong and weak parts
- inconsistently
more neutral; stresses lack of regularity without implying any part was good
- fitfully
narrower; emphasises stopping and starting rather than mixed quality
- consistently
at the same level the whole time
- steadily
without big changes from one moment to the next
用法筆記
Frequently used with verbs of performance, memory, writing, or service (perform, remember, sleep, run, work). Distinguish from sense 1, where the unevenness is about physical spread across an area; here the unevenness is about quality or consistency over time or across parts.