episodic

adjective

ep·​i·​sod·​ic ˌe-pə-ˈsä-dik 

also

-ˈzä- 

variants or less commonly episodical

ˌe-pə-ˈsä-di-kəl 

also -ˈzä-

1

: made up of separate especially loosely connected episodes

2

: having the form of an episode

3

: of or limited in duration or significance to a particular episode : temporary

… may be able to establish whether the sea-floor spreading is continuous or episodic …

—A. I. Hammond

4

: occurring, appearing, or changing at usually irregular intervals : occasional

an episodic illness

episodically

ˌe-pə-ˈsä-di-k(ə-)lē 

also -ˈzä-

adverb

Synonyms of episodic

• serial
• serialized

Examples of episodic in a Sentence

the long novel was filmed for television as an episodic movie that was shown over the course of five evenings

malaria is characterized by episodic attacks of chills and fever that coincide with mass destruction of blood cells

Recent Examples on the Web

Whiteley serves as series director, alongside episodic co-director Zoe Lyrintzis. — Denise Petski, Deadline, 20 Aug. 2026

From Episodic Care To An 'Always-On' Experience One of the most important shifts Gen-Z is driving is the transition from episodic care to continuous care. — Mita Malhotra, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2026

Those include numbness and tingling around the mouth and fingertips, trouble walking, talking or swallowing, sometimes weakness in the upper or lower extremity, balance issues or struggles with episodic memory. — Melissa Rudy, FOXNews.com, 18 Aug. 2026

On average, that’s 60 episodic series between the two combined studios and roughly 13 films, which would presume that a little less than half of the films the combined company intends to release each year would need to be shot here. — Brian Welk, IndieWire, 14 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1711, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for episodic

• periodic
• anodic
• helladic
• melodic
• prosodic
• rhapsodic
• spasmodic
• antispasmodic
• aperiodic
• modoc
• sodic
• photoperiodic