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: existing briefly and in an intermittent unpredictable way
on-again, off-again fads

Examples of on-again, off-again in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The pair had an on-again, off-again relationship for years, until they got engaged in June 2018 in Italy. Jordana Comiter, PEOPLE, 25 Nov. 2025 Last year, Cardi filed for divorce from Offset — the father of her three other children, Kulture, Wave, and Blossom — for the second time in their on-again, off-again relationship. Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 14 Nov. 2025 Over the weekend, a bipartisan group of senators reached an agreement to end the shutdown after holding a series of on-again, off-again talks over the last several weeks. Sam Gringlas, NPR, 10 Nov. 2025 White discussed his on-again, off-again Palms ban with the Las Vegas Review-Journal in 2012. Gary Baum, HollywoodReporter, 6 Nov. 2025 When others in the group meddle, Kim wonders if her on-again, off-again romance will affect her performance at SUR. Kate Aurthur, Variety, 3 Nov. 2025 Global commerce has been under strain this year as companies grapple with a flurry of on-again, off-again trade policies; the new port fees will likely make shipping rates more volatile, analysts said. Ben Smith, semafor.com, 17 Oct. 2025 The enduringly magnetic on-again, off-again power couple comprised of Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck reunited a year after their divorce at the premiere of the former's big new film, Kiss of the Spider Woman. Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Oct. 2025 My ten-year-old daughter’s iPad has an on-again, off-again relationship with my laptop. Rivka Galchen, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1946, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of on-again, off-again was in 1946

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Cite this Entry

“On-again, off-again.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/on-again%2C%20off-again. Accessed 30 Nov. 2025.

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