off and on
Idioms-
Also, on and off.
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Intermittently, from time to time. For example, I read his column off and on , or We've been working on the garden all summer, on and off . [Early 1500s]
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Also, off again, on again ; on again, off again . Uncertain, vacillating, as in Theirs is an off again, on again relationship , or The peace talks are on again, off again . Some believe this term originally referred to minor railroad accidents, where a train went off track and then on again. [Mid-1800s]
Vocabulary lists containing off-and-on
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.
He now works off and on as a tailor.
From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026
Prices at the pump marched higher for much of the spring as skirmishing off and on in Iran kept the Strait of Hormuz mostly closed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
He received two Daytime Emmy nominations for his portrayal of the charming but ruthless businessman, whom he portrayed off and on from 1982 to 2008.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
I had used them off and on for years and I always lied.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2026
Spiritualist friends wanted the powerful Maggie Fox to return to the séance table; and off and on, she did.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
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.
