repeatedly
Americanadverb
Etymology
Origin of repeatedly
Explanation
To do something repeatedly means to do it over and over again. If you text your friend repeatedly during her geometry test, she'll probably get annoyed and turn her phone off. If a teacher tells a student, "I've told you repeatedly that you need to raise your hand before you speak," it means that the teacher has said this many times. This adverb implies an ongoing or even constant kind of activity. At the heart of repeatedly is the verb repeat, which has the Latin root repetere, "do or say again," or "attack again."
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.
We track his evolution from Liverpudlian schoolboy to American media entrepreneur, his heart broken repeatedly by an English team whose hype is never matched by its performance.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026
Protesters have repeatedly taken to the streets in the capital, Havana, and in a demonstration on Wednesday blocked roads with burning rubbish and shouted anti-government slogans.
From BBC • May 22, 2026
Israel's army, which sometimes issued evacuation warnings ahead of strikes, has repeatedly said its attacks target Hezbollah sites and operatives -- not civilians.
From Barron's • May 22, 2026
They repeatedly grow and shrink during successive trips through the laser cavity, creating a rhythmic oscillation that resembles breathing.
From Science Daily • May 21, 2026
Blood obtained, I observed to her repeatedly, through illicit means.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
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.
