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Synonyms

fits and starts

Cultural  

  1. To do something in “fits and starts” is to do it intermittently or sporadically: “Martina has been working on her master's thesis in fits and starts; she needs to work on it consistently.”

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.

SpaceX’s Starship vehicle has had its fits and starts during flight tests last year.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 19, 2026

The affordability tour has only happened in fits and starts, however, and the president has not always stuck to the script.

From BBC • Feb. 24, 2026

Breaks in the case have come and fits and starts.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 18, 2026

After a courtship that unfurled in fits and starts, they married in 1996.

From Salon • Feb. 12, 2026

Gau talks quickly, but in fits and starts.

From "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.