From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpatchypatch‧y /ˈpætʃi/ adjective 1 DNSEPARATEhappening or existing in some areas but not in others patchy fog2 COMPLETEnot complete enough to be useful His knowledge of French remained pretty patchy. There is only patchy evidence of the animal’s existence.3 especially British EnglishBAD good in some parts but bad in others I thought the performance was patchy. —patchiness noun [uncountable]
Examples from the Corpus
patchy• The auditorium itself was rather similar, brown-walled and patchy.• My knowledge of the subject is pretty patchy.• The grass looked pretty patchy.• Pre-election nerves in the City last week left the performance of the remaining 10 Questor Selection shares looking distinctly patchy.• The records are patchy and incomplete.• The enamel has peeled off the taps like so much banana skin, revealing dull, patchy brass.• The film is patchy, despite one or two good performances.• Thicker cloud will bring patchy drizzle over north-west-facing coasts and hills.• patchy evidence• A patchy picture begin to emerge of what happened that night.• This is ideal for weathered stone and patchy plaster.• Many department stores reported patchy sales over Christmas.• Since this evidence is patchy, the chapter also begins to identify areas in which future research seems important. 