occasional

adjective

oc·​ca·​sion·​al ə-ˈkā-zh(ə-)nəl 

1

a

: of or relating to a particular occasion

a budget able to meet occasional demands as well as regular ones

b

: created for a particular occasion

occasional verse

occasional music

2

: acting as the occasion or contributing cause of something

occasional causes for creating apparent effects

3

: encountered, occurring, appearing, or taken at irregular or infrequent intervals

occasional visitors

an occasional vacation

found occasional errors

occasional episodes of chest pain

4

: acting in a specified capacity from time to time

an occasional lecturer

an occasional essayist

5

: designed or constructed to be used as the occasion demands

occasional furniture

Synonyms

• sporadic
• intermittent
• sudden

Examples of occasional in a Sentence

She receives occasional phone calls from her mother.

There will be occasional showers during the morning.

Most mornings, we'll see deer or the occasional bear walking past our house.

He tells an occasional joke to keep his students interested.

I need to take occasional breaks from work.

Sure, I drink an occasional glass of wine from time to time.

She's an occasional lecturer at the university.

Recent Examples on the Web

And in the Palabek camp, home to about 100,000 refugees, most people have no way to earn a living other than occasional farming work, at best making $2 a week. —Fatma Tanis, NPR, 2 Nov. 2025

Mom and Dad love treats like ice cream and donuts—there’s nothing wrong with the occasional treat—but the kids have to remind them to grab a nutritious snack every once in a while, too. —Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 31 Oct. 2025

The ropes under my hands, touched lightly, lightly, felt somewhat frayed and old, and the ironwood slats under my feet seemed occasional. —Ryan Knighton, AFAR Media, 31 Oct. 2025

Directed by Rebecca Miller, wife of occasional Scorsese collaborator Daniel Day-Lewis, the series is a worthy summing-up of one of the great careers in cinematic history. —Graham Hillard, The Washington Examiner, 31 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English occasyonal "occurring at intervals," borrowed from Medieval Latin occāsiōnālis "opportune, incidental," from occāsiōn-, occāsiō occasion entry 1 + Latin -ālis -al entry 1

First Known Use

1611, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for occasional

• equational

Kids Definition

occasional

adjective

oc·​ca·​sion·​al ə-ˈkāzh-nəl 

-ən-ᵊl

1

: of, relating to, or created for a particular occasion

occasional verse

2

: happening, appearing, or met with now and then

an occasional visitor