infrequent
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of infrequent
First recorded in 1525–35, infrequent is from the Latin word infrequent- (stem of infrequēns ). See in- 3, frequent
Explanation
Something that's infrequent doesn't happen very often. Your family might take infrequent trips to Disney World, traveling there every two or three years. Things that are infrequent are rare or uncommon. You'd probably be glad to have infrequent run-ins with mean dogs or ugly insects, but disappointed to get infrequent phone calls from your best friend. The adjective infrequent comes from the prefix in, which here means "not," and frequent, or "often," which is rooted in the Latin word frequentem, "crowded or repeated."
Vocabulary lists containing infrequent
Unit 1: Telling Details
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"The Pedestrian" by Ray Bradbury
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The Double Helix
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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.
There have been examples of similar divergences in the past, but they have been extremely infrequent, and much less extreme.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 4, 2026
Illegal dumping and infrequent street sweeping also contribute to the problem.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026
The 56-year-old First Lady carefully guards her image and is an infrequent presence at the White House, preferring to stay in New York where her son Barron is studying.
From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026
Meanwhile, infrequent fund value updates give endowments a false appearance of stability.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
Lord Hoster had not spoken his brother's name since, from what Edmure told her in his infrequent letters.
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
