Synonyms

intermittently

American

[in-ter-mit-nt-lee] / ˌɪn tərˈmɪt nt li /

adverb

at occasional or uneven intervals.

This species of flounder spawns mainly during the summer and early fall, but may spawn intermittently throughout the year.
In this parched landscape, water flows intermittently, with lakes and streams forming in the wet season and disappearing in the dry season.

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of intermittently

intermittent ( def. ) + -ly

Explanation

The adverb intermittently describes something that starts, then stops, then starts up again. If you studied intermittently last night, that means sometimes you studied but sometimes you took breaks to do other things. If something happens intermittently, it doesn’t happen all the time or in a steady flow, but goes in fits and starts. It might rain intermittently on Monday or your car might intermittently refuse to start. Make sure you spell intermittently with two “t”s. You can blame the Latin for that: intermittently evolved from the Latin root intermittĕre, which means “to cease.”

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Intermittently “Ballade” includes a lustrous sisterhood of what seem to be junior nymphs attending their sibling.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 13, 2025

Intermittently since June, John Eastman has appeared in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom as lawyers for the California Bar build the case that he is unfit to practice law.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 11, 2023

Intermittently, the earth violently shuddered as an aftershock jolted the hills.

From New York Times • Nov. 23, 2022

Intermittently, parades of staff ferry birthday desserts from STK’s kitchen, waving fireworks up in the air near the ceiling-swoops, which, at all closely examined, are clearly joined by tape and possibly made of paperboard.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 24, 2022

Intermittently, huge clouds of dust swelled upward, lingered a few moments in the air, and then settled down to make everything and everybody reddish brown.

From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023