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riddled

If an object is riddled with something, that means it's covered by that thing: for example, a tree trunk might be riddled with tiny holes made by the beaks of woodpeckers.

The adjective riddled most often describes something damaged by or spread full of holes, like a rusty old mailbox riddled with bullet holes or a block of Swiss cheese riddled with holes. You can also use it figuratively: "It's so sad, her dog is riddled with cancer," or "The plot of your novel is riddled with holes — it just doesn't hold up." Riddled comes from the Old English hriddel, "sieve."

Definitions of riddled
  1. adjective
    spread throughout
    “cities riddled with corruption”
    synonyms:
    full
    containing as much or as many as is possible or normal
  2. adjective
    (often followed by `with') damaged throughout by numerous perforations or holes
    “a sweater riddled with moth holes”
    “cliffs riddled with caves”
    “the bullet-riddled target”
    synonyms:
    damaged
    harmed or injured or spoiled
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