discontinuous

dis·con·tin·u·ous

adjective \ˌdis-kən-ˈtin-yə-wəs, -yü-əs\

Definition of DISCONTINUOUS

1

a (1) : not continuous <a discontinuous series of events> (2) : not continued : discrete <discontinuous features of terrain>

b : lacking sequence or coherence

2

: having one or more mathematical discontinuities —used of a variable or a function

— dis·con·tin·u·ous·ly adverb

Examples of DISCONTINUOUS

1. a discontinuous series of events
2. <the novel captures the discontinuous nature of a soldier's life: long stretches of boredom interrupted by flashes of chaos and panic>

First Known Use of DISCONTINUOUS

1718

Related to DISCONTINUOUS

Synonyms

aperiodic, casual, catchy, choppy, fitful, episodic (also episodical), erratic, intermittent, irregular, occasional, spasmodic, spastic, sporadic, spotty, unsteady

Antonyms

constant, continuous, habitual, periodic, regular, repeated, steady

Related Words

convulsive, sudden, violent; broken, disconnected, fragmentary, interrupted; aimless, arbitrary, desultory, haphazard, hit-and-miss, hit-or-miss, odd, random, scattered, slapdash, stray; capricious, changeful, changing, flickery, fluctuating, fluid, inconstant, mercurial, mutable, temperamental, uncertain, unpredictable, unsettled, unstable, varying, wavering; changeable, fickle, variable, volatile

Near Antonyms

changeless, equable, even, stable, stationary, uniform; unchanging, unvarying, unwavering; methodical (also methodic), orderly, systematic; unrelenting, unremitting