Question

desultory adjective The Latin adjective desultorius was used by the ancients to refer to a circus performer (called a desultor) whose trick was to leap from horse to horse without stopping. It makes sense, then, that someone or something desultory "jumps" from one thing to another. (Desultor and desultorius, by the way, come from the Latin verb salire, meaning "to leap.") A desultory conversation leaps from one topic to another and doesn't have a distinct point or direction. A desultory student skips from one subject to another without applying serious effort to any particular one. A desultory comment is a digressive one that jumps away from the topic at hand. And a desultory performance is one resulting from an implied lack of steady, focused effort. Desultory means "marked by lack of definite plan or purpose."// After graduation, he moved from job to job in a desultory manner.

Accepted Answer

August 31, 2021 DEH-sul-tor-ee "So my friend goes into the office with his copy, walks up to the creative director's desk, gently puts it down in front of him, and waits. The creative director looks baffled and irritated. He picks up the copy and gives it a desultory read." — Rob Long, Martini Shot (KCRW radio), 9 Apr. 2008

Word	desultory
Date	August 31, 2021
Type	adjective
Syllables	DEH-sul-tor-ee
Etymology	The Latin adjective desultorius was used by the ancients to refer to a circus performer (called a desultor) whose trick was to leap from horse to horse without stopping. It makes sense, then, that someone or something desultory "jumps" from one thing to another. (Desultor and desultorius, by the way, come from the Latin verb salire, meaning "to leap.") A desultory conversation leaps from one topic to another and doesn't have a distinct point or direction. A desultory student skips from one subject to another without applying serious effort to any particular one. A desultory comment is a digressive one that jumps away from the topic at hand. And a desultory performance is one resulting from an implied lack of steady, focused effort.
Examples	"So my friend goes into the office with his copy, walks up to the creative director's desk, gently puts it down in front of him, and waits. The creative director looks baffled and irritated. He picks up the copy and gives it a desultory read." — Rob Long, Martini Shot (KCRW radio), 9 Apr. 2008
Definition	Desultory means "marked by lack of definite plan or purpose." // After graduation, he moved from job to job in a desultory manner.

Desultory Adjective Latin Horse Topic Lack Creative Job