English

Noun

patchwork quilt ‎(plural patchwork quilts)

1. (literally) A decorative quilt made of pieces of cloth having diverse sizes, colors, and shapes, sewn together either to form a regular pattern or in a deliberately mismatched fashion without a pattern.
2. (figuratively, by extension) Something having a haphazard or disorganized structure; something composed of seemingly random parts.
   • 1989, Susan Tifft et. al., "Sticker Shock at the Ivory Tower," Time, 25 Sep.:

     Despite a patchwork quilt of aid that includes scholarships, loans and an on-campus job, Kenner's father, a train conductor, must now pay $6,000 out of pocket to send his daughter to school.

Synonyms

• (Something having a haphazard or disorganized structure or random composition): hodgepodge, jumble

Translations

See also

• crazy quilt