desultory
- Lacking a plan, purpose, or enthusiasm; moving aimlessly from one thing to another without clear connection.
In a sentence
- She made a desultory attempt to tidy the room before giving up and sitting back down.
- Their conversation was desultory, drifting from the weather to old films to half-remembered acquaintances.
Usage note. Desultory suggests both a lack of method and a lack of commitment; it often collocates with 'conversation,' 'attempt,' or 'reading' to convey half-hearted engagement.
Where it comes from
English desultory · entered English late 16th c.
From Latin 'desultorius,' meaning 'relating to a desultor' — a circus rider who leaped from horse to horse — derived from 'desultor,' from 'desilire,' meaning 'to leap down,' from 'de-' (down) and 'salire' (to leap). It entered English in the late 16th century.