desultory

Etymology

From Latin dēsultōrius (“hasty, casual, superficial”), from dēsultor (“a circus rider who jumped from one galloping horse to another”), from dēsiliō (“jump down”), from dē (“down”) + saliō (“jump, leap”).

adj

1. Jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another, without order, planning, or rational connection; lacking logical sequence.
   He wandered round, cleaning up in a desultory way.
   I teach a class of desultory minds.
   The Benelux Customs Union came into effect on January 1st 1948, and there followed desultory conversations between the Benelux countries, France and Italy over projects to extend such cooperation across a larger space. 2005, Tony Judt, “The Coming of the Cold War”, in Postwar: A history of Europe since 1945, London: Vintage Books, published 2010
   ‘Your desultory twenties,’ my mother calls my lost time, trying to make it sound reasonable and fun, but it started before I was twenty and lasted much longer. 2010, Jennifer Egan, “You (Plural)”, in A Visit from the Goon Squad
2. Out of course; by the way; not connected with the subject.
   I made a desultory remark while I was talking to my friend.
   She made a desultory attempt at conversation.
3. Disappointing in performance or progress.
4. (obsolete) Leaping, skipping or flitting about, generally in a random or unsteady manner.