intermittently

UK/ɪn.tərˈmɪt.ənt.lɪ/US/ɪn.tərˈmɪt.ənt.lɪ/

adverbB2+Rare in speech; mostly a word you read · #12,884 of 15,258mostly written

Intermittently means stopping and starting at irregular intervals. Rain fell intermittently, works intermittently, intermittently available.

The irregularity is the point, since something happening intermittently cannot be predicted, which is what separates it from periodically. An intermittent fault is the hardest kind to trace, because it will not appear when watched.

Definitions of intermittently

1adverbintermittentlyStopping and starting at irregular intervals.B2+
“It rained intermittently throughout the day, so we never put our umbrellas away.”

intermittently is a manner.

Where it comes from

Latin
intermittens — sending between
Middle French
intermittent
English
intermittent
English, today
intermittently

Built from

inter- · Latin — among, on
mittens · Latin — sending
mittere · Latin — to send

From intermittent + -ly. intermittent comes from Middle French intermittent, from Latin intermittens (“sending between”), from prefix inter- (“among, on”) + mittens (“sending”), from mittere (“to send”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practise this word

intermittently in the wild

The upright jerker was an execution method and device intermittently used in the United States during the 19th and early 20th century.
Upright jerker
The Merrica River is an intermediate intermittently closed saline coastal lagoon or perennial river located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia.
Merrica River
The Nadgee River is a mature intermittently closed saline coastal lagoon; or perennial river located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia.
Nadgee River
Terrigal Lagoon, an intermittently closed intermediate saline coastal lagoon, is located on the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia.
Terrigal Lagoon
The Bega River is an intermittently open intermediate wave dominated barrier estuary that is located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia.
Bega River (New South Wales)

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

Related words

the mittens family

intermittent intermittently

intermittently — used about once every 16,706 pages · #12,884 · point at the bar for the others

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