patchwork
- something made up of an incongruous variety of pieces or parts; hodgepodge: a patchwork of verse forms.
- work made of pieces of cloth or leather of various colors or shapes sewed together, used especially for covering quilts, cushions, etc.
- resembling a patchwork, especially in being makeshift, irregular, or improvised: a patchwork policy of dispensing foreign aid.
- to make as patchwork: She specializes in patchworking skirts.
- to assemble or connect in making patchwork: to patchwork neckties into bedspreads.
Origin of patchwork
Synonyms for patchwork
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comRelated Words for patchwork
jumble, plaid, mishmash, tartan, salmagundi, hash, salad, confusion, muddle, medley, stew, miscellany, pastiche, disorder, check, olioExamples from the Web for patchwork
Contemporary Examples of patchwork
The lab opened the door to a patchwork of grants from around the world which allowed Lavie to begin auditioning actresses.
We have a patchwork system in which some people are covered, and others wait and wait.
Medicaid Will Give You Money for At-Home Care, but You Might Wait YearsElizabeth Picciuto
December 2, 2014
A patchwork of building shells and cratered streets, the city tells of a cyclical war, still smoldering.
Other parents use a patchwork of care with a different plan in place every day.
Like a patchwork quilt we can cherry pick from the holiday the parts that nurture our well worn hearts.
Historical Examples of patchwork
Our pledge was not merely to do a patchwork job with secondhand materials.
He stripped to his underclothes and turned in under the patchwork comforters.
The Depot MasterJoseph C. Lincoln
My heart sank; patchwork was the thing my mother had tried to have me do, and I hated it.
Kristy's Rainy Day PicnicOlive Thorne Miller
This new and patchwork Court does but try to imitate the tone of its leader.
Tom Burke Of "Ours", Volume I (of II)Charles James Lever
Tests and forethought must take the place of failure and patchwork.
The Measurement of IntelligenceLewis Madison Terman
patchwork
- needlework done by sewing pieces of different materials together
- something, such as a theory, made up of various partsa patchwork of cribbed ideas