hourly

American  

[ouuhr-lee, ou-er-] / ˈaʊər li, ˈaʊ ər- /

adjective

1. of, pertaining to, occurring, or done each successive hour.

   hourly news reports.

2. computed or totaled in terms of an hour; using an hour as a basic unit of reckoning.

   hourly wages.

3. hired to work for wages by the hour.

   hourly workers.

4. frequent; continual.

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adverb

1. every hour; hour by hour.

2. at each hour or during every hour.

3. frequently; continually.

hourly British  

/ ˈaʊəlɪ /

adjective

1. of, occurring, or done every hour

2. done in or measured by the hour

   we are paid an hourly rate

3. continual or frequent

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adverb

1. every hour

2. at any moment or time

Etymology

Origin of hourly

late Middle English word dating back to 1425–75; see origin at hour, -ly

Example Sentences

The result: Across 41 industries that rely most heavily on low-skilled immigrants, hourly earnings rose by a weighted average of 3.5% in February from a year earlier, according to the latest figures.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 22, 2026

"The breakthrough was learning how to turn that time-lapse into hourly maps of currents by tracking how temperature patterns bend, stretch and move from one hour to the next."

From Science Daily • Apr. 22, 2026

Computer labs were eliminated years ago for being out of date and educationally inadequate for a student’s daily and even hourly academic needs.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 21, 2026

"That is why compensation now reflects outcomes, measurable commercial impact, and value creation, rather than simply salary plus bonus. AI changes time and speed, so there's little future in the hourly rate," says Skellett.

From BBC • Apr. 16, 2026

But who was he to be pampered with the daily and hourly sight of loveliness?

From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley

Related Words

• annual
• intermittent
• monthly
• occasional
• recurrent
• recurring
• regular
• repeated
• routine
• seasonal
• sporadic
• weekly
• yearly