1
as in sporadic
lacking in steadiness or regularity of occurrence
the weekend forecast is for occasional showers
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in odd
not often occurring or repeated
an occasional mechanical problem with our car, but nothing serious
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of occasional
Hawaii's main islands have seen occasional direct landfalls from hurricanes and tropical storms over the years, including along some of its western islands.
—
Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2025
While occasional jealousy is natural, constant suspicion, interrogating whereabouts or pressuring the other person for explanations signals deeper trust issues.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Bolaño, seeking space to both disconnect while connecting to her work (and maybe to host the occasional dinner for friends) was a natural fit.
—Keith Flanagan, Architectural Digest, 11 Sep. 2025
Sauer has six pitches in his arsenal, mainly relying on a cutter, four-seam fastball, slider and sinker while also mixing in a split finger and occasional curveball.
—Noah Camras, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for occasional
Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2025
While occasional jealousy is natural, constant suspicion, interrogating whereabouts or pressuring the other person for explanations signals deeper trust issues.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Bolaño, seeking space to both disconnect while connecting to her work (and maybe to host the occasional dinner for friends) was a natural fit.
—Keith Flanagan, Architectural Digest, 11 Sep. 2025
Sauer has six pitches in his arsenal, mainly relying on a cutter, four-seam fastball, slider and sinker while also mixing in a split finger and occasional curveball.
—Noah Camras, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for occasional
Recent Examples of Synonyms for occasional
Adjective
-
Kiir and Machar had served in a unity government as part of a peace deal that ended the civil war, but their partnership remained tenuous and sporadic violence has continued between the two sides.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
12 Sep. 2025
-
If done right, rather than being a sporadic on-again, off-again (and, perhaps, threatening) part of workplace life, change will be embraced as a foundational attribute of your organization’s entrepreneurial culture.—
Julia Dhar,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
So, Hilleary will be in the odd position of facing a significant pay cut for getting a big promotion on Capitol Hill.—
David Mark,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
-
The iPhone Air Only Supports USB 2 Speeds The iPhone Air is relatively full-featured for such a thin phone, but Apple did make some odd compromises.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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In some cases, this even results in no weight loss during intermittent fasting, and instead to muscle loss and fat buildup.—
Frederik Jötten,
Scientific American,
12 Sep. 2025
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What's more, intermittent fasting (which has been shown to alleviate some symptoms of Alzheimer's disease), following a period of eating a high-fat diet was also enough of an intervention to restore normal activity to the CCK interneurons.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
About 18 vehicles, including a number of rare barn find cars, were auctioned from the collection.—
Eric D. Lawrence,
USA Today,
12 Sep. 2025
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That kind of attention feels rare now.—
Daniel Scheffler,
Forbes.com,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Earthquakes' sudden, rapid shaking can cause fires, tsunamis, landslides or avalanches.—
CA Earthquake Bot,
Sacbee.com,
13 Sep. 2025
-
And then all of a sudden, the pick.—
Doug Kyed,
Boston Herald,
13 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
This allows bitBiome researchers to identify novel genes to insert into a standard laboratory protein-production organism and generate samples of potentially interesting new versions of the enzymes or proteins encoded by the isolated gene sequences.—
Steven Savage,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
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The film, which premiered at Toronto International Film Festival, opens with a truck speeding off after having deposited the body of a teenage girl dressed in a school uniform on an isolated desert peak.—
Beandrea July,
IndieWire,
8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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This is an unusual feature for a screen that’s designed for color-critical design tasks.—
Mark Sparrow,
Forbes.com,
14 Sep. 2025
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When Macron was here, Mick Jagger was there with his girlfriend, which is quite unusual.—
Stephanie Nolasco,
FOXNews.com,
14 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Despite how infrequent attacks are, black bears are abundant in the state, with more than 5,000 throughout Arkansas.—
Mike Stunson,
Kansas City Star,
9 Sep. 2025
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With infrequent use, cleaning once a month should be sufficient most of the time.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
9 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Occasional.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/occasional. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.
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