Motley

/ˈmɒtli/ · adjective

Meaning

Comprising greatly varied elements, to the point of incongruity..

Definitions by Sense

1. Comprising greatly varied elements, to the point of incongruity.
2. Having many colours; variegated.
3. An incongruous mixture.
4. (uncountable) A jester's multicoloured clothes.
5. (countable, figuratively, by extension) A jester; a fool.
6. (transitive) To give something a patchwork appearance.
7. (transitive, figuratively, by extension) To make something multicolored, variegated, or diverse in character.

Example Sentences

I met a fool i' th' forest, / A motley' fool.

Carried somehow, somewhither, for some reason, on these surging floods, were these travelers,[…]. Even such a boat as the Mount Vernon offered a total deck space so cramped as to leave secrecy or privacy well out of the question, even had the motley and democratic assemblage of passengers been disposed to accord either.

"One of them can see you, and one of them can see an empty hallway." Reynders narrowed her bleary eyes — she wasn't wearing her glasses, for some reason — as though momentarily uncertain which sight she was seeing. She apparently decided in favour of their motley group. "I'm the one who can see you. The one who can see you can talk to you. The one who can't talk to you can see you too, sometimes, but she doesn't want to because she knows you're not there. Where she is."

Wil you be married, Motley?

Alas, 'tis true, I have gone here and there, / And made myself a motley to the view, […]

Synonyms for motley

Antonyms for motley

Related Words

Word Forms

• more motley
• motlier
• motleyer
• most motley
• motliest
• motleyest
• motleys
• motleying
• motleyed

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

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