Meaning & use
blotchy
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Meaning
adjectivecomparable
Covered with uneven patches or spots of color, especially on skin or a surface.
Grammar: Used before a noun or after a verb: blotchy skin, her face looked blotchy.
Patterns
- blotchy with something
- look blotchy
Her face was blotchy and red after crying.
The paint dried blotchy because the wall was dirty.
Too much sun left his shoulders blotchy and sore.
Word forms
| comparative | blotchier |
|---|---|
| superlative | blotchiest |
Common combinations
- blotchy skin
- Stress can leave you with blotchy skin.
- blotchy complexion
- He had a blotchy complexion from the cold wind.
- blotchy face
- Her blotchy face showed she had been crying.
- blotchy paint
- The blotchy paint needed a second coat.
- blotchy tan
- The cheap lotion gave her a blotchy tan.
- red and blotchy
- His eyes were red and blotchy after a sleepless night.
Synonyms and how they differ
- patchy
- Patchy is a milder, more neutral word for uneven coverage and does not always imply an unpleasant look.
- mottled
- Mottled suggests a pattern of marked spots or streaks and can sound more natural, as with marble.
- splotchy
- Splotchy is nearly the same but a little more informal and American.
- spotty
- Spotty means covered in small distinct spots, while blotchy suggests larger, irregular patches.
Opposites
Word family
- blotch noun
- a large irregular spot or stain
- blotch verb
- to mark with blotches
- blotchiness noun
- the state of being blotchy
- blotched adjective
- marked with blotches
Commonly confused: blotchy or blotto?
blotchy vs blotto
Blotto is British slang for very drunk and has nothing to do with skin or patches.
Practice
After the long run in cold wind, her cheeks looked red and ___.
Choose one answer.
Blotchy describes skin with uneven patches of color, which cold wind can cause. Smooth, glossy and tidy describe the opposite or are unrelated.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “blotchy”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.