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

Both could generate a mixed bag of precipitation, and these would be carrying more abundant moisture all the way from the Gulf of Mexico.

From Washington Post

Still, elevating rosters from Contenders has proven a mixed bag of results in the past.

From Washington Post

Awards season is never not a mixed bag, but the 2021 Golden Globe nominations landed with a particular thud on Wednesday.

From Time

Today’s storm brings a mixed bag of precipitation starting this afternoon and continuing tonight.

From Washington Post

Contextual links in featured snippets, however, may be more of a mixed bag than first impressions would lead us to believe.

From Search Engine Land

Russianoff says that after 16 years of Straphangers Campaign rankings, the subway remains a “mixed bag.”

From The Daily Beast

Plus, his remake history is a mixed bag, with the solid True Grit and the atrocious Oldboy.

From The Daily Beast

But, as was maybe to be expected, the film itself is a bit of a mixed bag.

From The Daily Beast

Of course, other recent royal pageants and spectacles have been something of a mixed bag, economically speaking.

From The Daily Beast

It's a mixed bag of reviews for the new controversial dark comedy starring two former Disney princesses.

From The Daily Beast

That was when I collected that extraordinary mixed bag of information which I was wondering yesterday whether to believe or not.

From Project Gutenberg

Naturally, in a mixed bag such as this, one can't complain if the quality of the contents varies.

From Project Gutenberg

The others a mixed bag of whoever was close enough to be pulled in on this crash assignment.

From Project Gutenberg

Later in the day I heard the Turk had got a larger mixed bag than I have stated.

From Project Gutenberg

But with a mixed bag of men, I had to grab leadership quick or be relegated to nowhere.

From Project Gutenberg