choppy

[chop-ee]

adjective

choppier, choppiest 

1. (of the sea, a lake, etc.) forming short, irregular, broken waves.

2. (of the wind) shifting or changing suddenly or irregularly; variable.

3. uneven in style or quality or characterized by poorly related parts.

   The book was a choppy first novel.

choppy

/ ˈtʃɒpɪ /

adjective

1. (of the sea, weather, etc) fairly rough

Other Word Forms

• choppily adverb
• choppiness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of choppy¹

First recorded in 1595–1605; chop ² + -y ¹

Example Sentences

Lee said that the next two weeks could be choppy, before giving way to a rebound.

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U.S. natural gas futures settled lower in a choppy session with the market moving up and down on daily shifts in the weather outlook.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Target’s incoming CEO Michael Fiddelke has his work cut out for him amid choppy consumer demand trends as he attempts to turn the struggling retailer around.

Read more on Barron's

Target’s incoming CEO Michael Fiddelke has his work cut out for him amid choppy consumer demand trends as he attempts to turn the struggling retailer around.

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Chief Executive Melinda Whittington said La-Z-Boy is gaining momentum in what remains a choppy landscape, and expects efforts to grow the company’s retail store footprint will position it to benefit when overall industry volumes rebound.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• rough 
• uneven