mixed bag

noun

, Informal.

1. an often unexpected assortment of various things, people, or ideas:

   The concert was a mixed bag of works from three centuries.

mixed bag

noun

1. informal.
   something composed of diverse elements, characteristics, people, etc

Word History and Origins

Origin of mixed bag¹

First recorded in 1935–40

Idioms and Phrases

A heterogeneous collection of people, items, activities, or the like; an assortment. For example, The school offers a mixed bag of after-school activities—team sports, band practice, a language class . This idiom calls up the image of a sack full of different items. [First half of 1900s]

Example Sentences

The assignment itself is something of a mixed bag, but at no time will you think, “Billy Crystal isn’t up to this.”

From Los Angeles Times

Indiana was a mixed bag of people too polite to explain who they supported, or too scared to do so.

From Salon

He added that using social media “is a mixed bag,” like relying “on a trusted messenger” to route information to audiences that are connected to one another.

From Los Angeles Times

England's two performances under the 50-year-old have been a mixed bag.

From BBC

It’s a busy, chaotic, mixed bag of recycled material that just leaves us wondering why we bothered summoning this project back from the dead in the first place.

From Los Angeles Times