sparse
Few and scattered
Sparse describes something thinly scattered or distributed, with wide gaps between elements.
A sparse population is spread thinly across a large area.
Sparse vegetation grows in isolated patches.
Sparse data has many missing values.
The word suggests insufficiency—not quite enough of whatever is present: Details were sparse.
Spread widely apart
- dottedMarked with small points
- sporadicOccurring irregularly, infrequently
- intermittentOccurring at irregular intervals
- patchyIrregular in coverage
sprinkled · peppered · discontinuous · spotty · uneven · infrequent · occasional · few
Being without something
- inadequateNot sufficient for purpose
- deficientHaving too little
- scarceIn short supply
- scarcityInsufficiency of something needed
paucity · dearth · wanting · limited · meager · paltry · skimpy · scanty
Holding nothing inside
- starkSevere and unadorned
- desolateBleak and abandoned
- barrenUnable to produce
- unadornedLacking decoration or ornament
stripped · bleak · vacant · naked · unfurnished · plain · austere · unembellished
Thin and insubstantial
- fineAcceptable in quality
- stringyFull of fibers
- scragglyIrregularly sparse and messy
- thinningReducing density or number
patchy · delicate · tenuous · gossamer · filamentous · threadlike · gauzy · sheer
Lack of complexity
- cleanFree of soil
- streamlinedMade smooth and efficient
- functionalAble to operate correctly
- understatedDeliberately minimized in expression
restrained · elegant · refined · sleek · subtle · pared-down · economical · essentialist
dispersed
Spread widely apart
- dottedMarked with small points
- sporadicOccurring irregularly, infrequently
- intermittentOccurring at irregular intervals
patchy · sprinkled · peppered · discontinuous · spotty · uneven · infrequent · occasional · few · stray
lacking
Being without something
- inadequateNot sufficient for purpose
- deficientHaving too little
- scarceIn short supply
scarcity · paucity · dearth · wanting · limited · meager · paltry · skimpy · scanty · lean
empty
Holding nothing inside
unadorned · stripped · bleak · vacant · naked · unfurnished · plain · austere · unembellished · uncluttered
wispy
Thin and insubstantial
thinning · patchy · delicate · tenuous · gossamer · filamentous · threadlike · gauzy · sheer
simplicity
Lack of complexity
- cleanFree of soil
- streamlinedMade smooth and efficient
- functionalAble to operate correctly
understated · restrained · elegant · refined · sleek · subtle · pared-down · economical · essentialist · unornamented
- art adjectivesbold, bright, colorful, dark, delicate
- brevitybrevity, concise, succinct, terse, pithy
- Visual Complexityintricate, detailed, busy, cluttered, chaotic
- pattern traitsregularity, symmetry, repetition, uniformity, variation
- adjectivesbig, urgent, amazing, temporary, bold
- hairhair, haircut, hairstyle, hair loss, coily
sparsedense
Closely packed together
thick · packed · crowded · concentrated · clustered
- sparse populationFew people per area
- sparsely populatedHaving few inhabitants
- sparse vegetationMinimal plant life present
- sparse treesWidely spaced forest growth