ˈsläpē, -pi adjective
( -er/-est )
Etymology: slop (II) + -y
1.
a. : muddy or slushy so as to spatter easily : splashy
those bogs can be great, sloppy messes of treacle pudding in wet weather — Wynford Vaughan-Thomas
the race was run over a sloppy track — G.F.T.Ryall
b. : wet or smeared with slopped liquid or moist material : messy
the oilcloth was sticky and sloppy and smeared
2. of a garment : lacking formality or fastidiousness : ill fitted or worn carelessly
3. : feebly organized or directed : ill concerted or contrived : lacking firmness : careless , loose , slovenly
the misery of all those sloppy words will fade as the correct, crisp sentence at last comes to her — L.B.Nicolson
he was a sloppy dresser — W.L.Gresham
harden sloppy thinking — Charlton Laird
4. : marked by excessive or indiscriminate sentimentality : effusive , gushing, soft
gives much of his time to sloppy self-pity — E.F.Meagher
5. : disturbed with heavy waves : having a rough or choppy surface — used of lakes and seas
hadn't the constitution to handle a heavy steering oar … in a sloppy sea — R.S.Porteous
6. : drunk , intoxicated
he had finished his fourth drink and was getting a little sloppy — Edmund Wilson
Synonyms: see slipshod