choppy
Americanadjective
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(of the sea, a lake, etc.) forming short, irregular, broken waves.
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(of the wind) shifting or changing suddenly or irregularly; variable.
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uneven in style or quality or characterized by poorly related parts.
The book was a choppy first novel.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of choppy
Explanation
When water is choppy, it's wind-blown and rippling with waves. It's tricky for a beginner to sail in a choppy lake. Choppy usually describes what happens to the surface of a body of water during a storm. Strong wind blowing across a bay, for example, turns the water choppy and rough. Something with a jerky, abrupt way of moving or flowing is also choppy, whether it's a piece of music or a filmed scene in a movie. In the 1600s, a stormy sea was described as chopping, which had changed to choppy by about 1830.
Vocabulary lists containing choppy
Rick
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Kareem Between
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Drowned City: Hurricane Katrina & New Orleans
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
They have been documented engaging in "wave washing" -- cooperating to create choppy waters that knock seals off sheets of ice so they can be more easily captured and eaten.
From Barron's ● Jul. 23, 2026
Although the water was choppy Tuesday afternoon, Smith said, it was not extremely rough.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
Meanwhile, up to 20 teenagers were rescued from choppy seas off the Lancashire coast.
From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2026
U.S. natural gas futures were lower in choppy trade with a warmer weather outlook for early July supporting prices while solid production and comfortable inventories limited gains.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
By the time we reached the channel markers, the waves had gotten choppy.
From "Flush" by Carl Hiaasen
But in recent weeks, that rotation has been choppier, with small daily moves in the indexes painting over sharper undulations underneath the hood.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 12, 2026
The market action around the AI trade—plays on the global AI investment boom—got even choppier this past week.
From Barron's ● Nov. 13, 2025
The water’s likely to get much choppier in the afternoon.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2025
But we’d be foolish to ignore the role that the climate crisis is playing in making air travel choppier.
From Seattle Times ● May 24, 2024
The wind has picked up a bit, so the waves are choppier and it’s a little colder.
From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy
Beware of the Halloween dip, says Citadel Securities’ Scott Rubner, whose chart shows we’re in one of the choppiest months for stocks.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2025
It's been one of choppiest offseasons in recent memory, so maybe that light at the end of winter's tunnel isn't burning so bright this year.
From Golf Digest ● Mar. 2, 2020
Ken Livingstone sailed straight for the choppiest waters.
From The Guardian ● Nov. 27, 2016
Last September, the VIX hovered around levels nearly double its average, after a downgrade to the credit rating of the U.S. touched off some of the choppiest markets in years.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2012
The choppiest schedule belongs to the 49ers: three 1 p.m. starts, one at 4:05, seven at 4:15, three at 8:20, two at 8:30, with appearances on all five N.F.L. networks.
From New York Times ● Apr. 21, 2012
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
