patchwork

CEFRB2

/pˈæˌtʃwɜrk/

noun

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

01
noun
Material made by joining small pieces together.
02
noun
A mixture of different parts that do not fully match.

Examples

From the plane, the landscape was just a patchwork of fields.
Now, get out your patchwork and have your square done before teatime.

At a glance

Sits at B2 on the CEFR scale

Senses: 5
Parts of speech: 1
Citations: 4

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

A state of regulations whose constituents have an opaque scope of application because of their questionable delimitation with regard to each other.
Any kind of creation that makes use of many different aspects to create one whole piece.
A work, such as a blanket, composed of many different colors and shapes, sewn together to make an interesting whole.

More examples

In context

Bill took all of his poetry and put it together in a folder. It made up a patchwork of his life.
Proponents of an AI moratorium had argued that a patchwork of state and local AI laws is hindering progress in the AI industry and the ability of U.S. firms to compete with China.

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The blank quilt was made from many different fabric squares sewn together.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Citations

The word in print, with each source given in full.

Everything about China is super-sized: The five new parks, which in some cases stitched together an older patchwork of conservation zones, sprawl across more than 88,800 square miles of territory—a protected area more than 25 times the size of Yellowstone National Park in the United States.
2022 November 17, Paul Salopek, “A ‘Slow Storytelling’ Writing and Photography Workshop Boosts Conservation in China”, in National Geographic
The wider North West and Central Region is itself a microcosm of the industry's complexity. Covering the approaches to London Euston, stretching through Birmingham and the West Midlands, and reaching Manchester, Liverpool and beyond, it is a patchwork of overlapping markets, political geographies, and infrastructure types.
2025 October 1, Richard Wilcock, “There is more to be proud of in the railway than we sometimes allow ourselves to see”, in RAIL, number 1045, page 40
Present United States privacy law – despite being made up of a patchwork federal and state constitutional, statutory, and common law – is predominantly based on the ideals of individual control, autonomy, and liberty from governmental intrusion, despite the fact that its inspiration was an idea grounded on the importance of protecting human dignity and an “inviolate personality.”
2011, Bryce Clayton Newell, “Rethinking Reasonable Expectations of Privacy in Online Social Networks”, in Richmond Journal of Law and Technology, volume 17, number 4, page 5
Proponents of an AI moratorium had argued that a patchwork of state and local AI laws is hindering progress in the AI industry and the ability of U.S. firms to compete with China.
2025 July 1, Matt Brown and Matt O'Brien, “Senate strikes AI regulatory ban from GOP bill after uproar from the states”, in AP News

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Origin

noun

From patch + work.

Deep Dive

noun

More examples

Quick test

The blank— quilt was made from many different fabric squares sewn together.

Nearby

Origin

noun

The blank quilt was made from many different fabric squares sewn together.