patchwork

American  

[pach-wurk] / ˈpætʃˌwɜrk /

noun

1. something made up of an incongruous variety of pieces or parts; hodgepodge.

   a patchwork of verse forms.

   Synonyms:

   mélange, jumble, medley

2. work made of pieces of cloth or leather of various colors or shapes sewed together, used especially for covering quilts, cushions, etc.

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adjective

1. resembling a patchwork, especially in being makeshift, irregular, or improvised.

   a patchwork policy of dispensing foreign aid.

verb (used with object)

1. to make as patchwork.

   She specializes in patchworking skirts.

2. to assemble or connect in making patchwork.

   to patchwork neckties into bedspreads.

patchwork British  

/ ˈpætʃˌwɜːk /

noun

1. needlework done by sewing pieces of different materials together

2. something, such as a theory, made up of various parts

   a patchwork of cribbed ideas

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Other Word Forms

• patchworky adjective

Etymology

Origin of patchwork

First recorded in 1685–95; patch ¹ + work

Example Sentences

Instead, liquid water likely interacted with different parts of the asteroid under varying conditions, creating a patchwork of chemical environments.

From Science Daily

The rest of him was a patchwork—black snout and face, orange ears and torso, pepper-gray haunches, black paws.

From Literature

Elsewhere, a patchwork of laws limits the practice to EV startups or to specific manufacturers.

From The Wall Street Journal

The film portrays a rural Hungary made up of a patchwork of poor villages, home especially to the country's large Roma minority.

From BBC

Husband said fans often looked like a "patchwork quilt" with different colours of shirts in the stands but were brought together by the national dress.

From BBC

Related Words

• jumble
• mishmash
• plaid
• tartan