dappled

American  

[dap-uhld] / ˈdæp əld /

adjective

1. having spots of a different shade, tone, or color from the background; mottled.

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Other Word Forms

• undappled adjective

Etymology

Origin of dappled

1350–1400; Middle English, probably < Scandinavian; akin to Old Norse depill spot

Example Sentences

The Dalmatian fern, with its dappled fronds and alert bearing.

From Literature

Filming in woods near Nara, and then in the Komyoji forest in Kyoto prefecture, Miyagawa created a latticework of sunlight with tree branches and leaves forming a living carpet of dappled shadows.

From The Wall Street Journal

Picnic in our backpacks, my husband and I hiked in from the Palomarin Headlands — about 2.5 miles — along cliffs where you can spot gray and humpback whales, and shaded paths where dappled shadows dance.

From Los Angeles Times

“Six Feet Under” is dappled with Lynchian homages – easy enough to explain in a show about a family that dwells in the figurative crawlspace between life and death, whose business is guiding families through loss.

From Salon

If a political debate is your idea of a good time — rather than, say, sitting on the sugary sands of some beach watching a dappled sunset play on the water, more power to you!

From Los Angeles Times