sloppy
/ˈslɒpi
/adjective (sloppier, sloppiest)
1Careless and unsystematic; excessively casual: we gave away a goal through sloppy defending...
- It's true that people get signed on the strength of some pretty ropey demos but you have to think about why you would want to expend the effort of being in a band and then showcase your sound in such a sloppy careless way.
- There is no reason for the government to shape policies to protect companies that are inherently weak, or are sloppy and careless.
- Meticulous on the one hand, but unbelievably sloppy and careless on the other.
Synonyms
careless, slapdash, slipshod, lackadaisical, disorganized, haphazard, unmethodical, unsystematic, hit-or-miss, untidy, messy, thoughtless, inattentive, heedless, hasty, hurried;
thrown together, last-minute, cursory, perfunctory, negligent, neglectful, remiss, lax, slack, slovenly;
amateurish, unprofessional
informal shambolic, all over the place, slap-happy
British informal all over the shop
2(Of a garment) casual and loose-fitting: she wore a sloppy sweater and jeans...
- I normally wear big sloppy shirts to disguise my figure, but I cannot go to the beach because it is so obvious that I have no top.
- They pull it all together, like a great belt does a sloppy dress.
- Leaving it hanging out makes you look really sloppy, especially when most shirts I buy are sized too big, thus making it look like I'm wearing a dress.
Synonyms
baggy, loose-fitting, loose, generously cut, not tight, roomy;
shapeless, sack-like, slack, oversized, ill-fitting, bagging
3(Of semi-fluid matter) containing too much liquid; watery: do not make the concrete too sloppy...
- This point was well made when the woman next to me spilt some of her sloppy pasta sauce on to the floor and it almost hit me.
- Sketch was staring at it as well, in between bites of a sloppy peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
- The mixture was ridiculously sloppy, so I added more flour and breadcrumbs and then tried to mould the mixture around the layer of mince.
Synonyms
runny, watery, thin, liquid, semi-liquid, mushy, soupy;
wet, soggy, slushy, sludgy;
South African slap
informal gloopy
4 informal (Of literature or behaviour) weakly or foolishly sentimental: lovers of sloppy romance...
- I like to have my tears jerked as much as the next sloppy sentimentalist.
- In a culture as sloppy with sentiment and theologically illiterate as ours, it's a dangerous thing to spend much time speculating about.
- I was going to write about a couple of more films tonight, but I'm fading fast and my prose is getting a little sloppy and sentimental.
Synonyms
sentimental, mawkish, over-sentimental, overemotional, cloying, sickly, saccharine, sugary, sugar-coated, syrupy;
romantic, hearts-and-flowers;
British twee
informal slushy, mushy, weepy, tear-jerking, schmaltzy, cutesy, lovey-dovey, gooey, drippy, sloshy, soupy, treacly, cheesy, corny, icky, sick-making, toe-curling
British informal soppy
North American informal cornball, sappy, hokey, three-hanky
trademark Mills-and-Boon
Derivatives
sloppily
/ adverb ...- But it would be rude of you and you'd deserve those dirty looks if you blew your nose loudly and sloppily right next to someone.
- He wears an oversized black hoodie and a sloppily tied ponytail.
- Their answer seems to be a sloppily sewn-together quilt of stale stereotypes and untimely political references.