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; hour, -ly

Example Sentences

Valatsas highlighted the solid jobs growth of 178,000 in March, the fall in unemployment to 4.3% and the 3.5% increase in average hourly earnings.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 7, 2026

They run the gamut from high-level careers in AI strategy to hourly work, in industries including finance, healthcare and manufacturing.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026

The human rights advocate said one of her clients was held in a police station with dozens of others, but reported seeing many people released hourly - many of them French nationals.

From BBC • Mar. 30, 2026

It employs about 4,200 hourly workers, who will be mandated into overtime hours to cover the additional day of production.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

They would race first, for a distance of two miles, followed at hourly intervals by the junior varsity and the varsity, each racing for three miles.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

Related Words

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