intermittent

adjective

in·​ter·​mit·​tent ˌin-tər-ˈmi-tᵊnt 

1

: coming and going at intervals : not continuous

intermittent rain

also : occasional

intermittent trips abroad

2

of a stream or body of water : appearing and disappearing seasonally : sometimes dry

intermittently adverb

raining intermittently

Synonyms of intermittent

• recurrent
• recurring
• periodic

Examples of intermittent in a Sentence

In the intermittent light he could make out the shape of a solitary oak tree, spreading great arms from its short tremendous trunk. —Susan Cooper, The Dark is Rising, (1973) 1999

Decades of intermittent but recurring controversies with imperial authorities, and the lodestar of the glorious Revolution, disposed Americans to continue to believe that representation existed, first and foremost, to protect the rights of their communities against the abuse of executive power. —Jack N. Rakove, Original Meanings, 1996

Bronchodilators continue to play an important role in asthma treatment, especially for people who have relatively mild or intermittent attacks. —Stephen Hoffmann, Harvard Medical School Health Letter, June 1991

The patient was having intermittent pains in his side.

The forecast is for intermittent rain.

Recent Examples on the Web

In Iraq, the United States inflicted a dozen years of punishing sanctions, intermittent bombing, and failed regime change and counterproliferation efforts, followed by the disastrous 2003 invasion and occupation, all at tremendous human cost. — Marc Lynch, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026

Old Assumptions, New Realities The traditional hardware stack made sense when workloads were intermittent. — David Schie, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026

The ship has experienced intermittent food shortages, low supplies of hygiene items, and problems with the water system, sailors and family members told CNN. — Tim Lister, CNN Money, 15 Aug. 2026

China’s renewable sector, like the UK’s but on a larger scale, also faces storage and connection problems, because renewables are intermittent and often far from population centres. — The Week Uk, TheWeek, 15 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin intermittent-, intermittens, present participle of intermittere — see intermit

First Known Use

1601, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing intermittent

• intermittent claudication

Rhymes for intermittent

• remittent

Kids Definition

intermittent

adjective

in·​ter·​mit·​tent ˌint-ər-ˈmit-ᵊnt 

: starting, stopping, and starting again

an intermittent fever

intermittently adverb

Medical Definition

intermittent

adjective

in·​ter·​mit·​tent ˌint-ər-ˈmit-ᵊnt 

: coming and going at intervals : not continuous

intermittent fever

intermittence

-ᵊn(t)s 

noun