occasional

adjective

ə-ˈkā-zh(ə-)nəl How to pronounce occasional (audio)
Definition of occasionalnext
1
as in sporadic
lacking in steadiness or regularity of occurrence the weekend forecast is for occasional showers

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in odd
not often occurring or repeated an occasional mechanical problem with our car, but nothing serious

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of occasional But running around town all day, with the occasional epic dinner out, means a constant trade-off between style and comfort. — Alaina Chou, Bon Appetit Magazine, 6 Nov. 2026 With the occasional exception of a judge’s sentencing remarks, nothing in court is photographed, filmed, or recorded for the media. — Luke Jones, Vanity Fair, 5 Nov. 2026 The British manufacturer may have realized that the typical Tiger 1200 spends considerably more time eating up highway miles, tackling daily commutes and wandering along the occasional gravel track than navigating genuinely challenging terrain. — New Atlas, 4 Nov. 2026 Her dangling tongue, tuft of Troll doll-esque blond hair, and pink ribbon juxtaposed with an occasional top hat give her a quirky, sometimes unsettling charm. — Jennifer Byrne, Popular Science, 4 Nov. 2026 See All Example Sentences for occasional
Recent Examples of Synonyms for occasional
  1. sporadic
  2. odd
  3. intermittent
  4. rare
  5. sudden
  6. isolated
  7. unusual
  8. infrequent
Adjective
  • Police are prepared but sporadic tensions flare Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said that 70,000 police officers were deployed, backed by armored vehicles, drones and helicopters.
    — Sylvie Corbet, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2026
  • More sporadic light showers will likely to continue on and off across the Sacramento Valley through the remainder of the afternoon and evening Tuesday as the center of the low pressure moves directly past Sacramento.
    — Sean Macaday, Sacbee.com, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of sporadic
Adjective
  • He was considered odd, super-smart with a photographic memory, and yet different.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 6 Nov. 2026
  • For Karis, an officer for four years, one odd item that topped the list was a microwave oven with a raw turkey or chicken.
    — Meena Thiruvengadam, Travel + Leisure, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of odd
Adjective
  • The best chance of showers will be during the morning hours, with more intermittent light showers possible through the afternoon and evening.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 3 Nov. 2026
  • In the case of intermittent signals, the culprit might never be found.
    — IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of intermittent
Adjective
  • The other, in Washington state, died in November 2025 from a rarer version called H5N5.
    — Mike Stobbe, Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2026
  • Both were unbelievably tender and seared to a perfect medium-rare.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of rare
Adjective
  • The performance is bringing a sudden wave of attention, which the 26-year-old actor is navigating with help from family, friends and firm boundaries.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2026
  • Testing methodology Extreme forces driving modern aerospace and defense systems expose structural materials to rapid deformation, crushing pressure, and sudden failure.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of sudden
Adjective
  • That could unlock more opportunities to deploy Digit 5 beyond the confines of isolated work cells within warehouses and factories, said Pras Velagapudi, chief technology officer at Agility, in a previous conversation with Ars.
    — Jeremy Hsu, ArsTechnica, 5 Nov. 2026
  • Widespread rainfall totals of 3 to 6 inches from slow-moving overnight storms were reported across parts of North Georgia, with over 8 inches in isolated spots.
    — Mary Gilbert, CNN Money, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of isolated
Adjective
  • The Wiles interviews stuck out for their candor, which is unusual for a sitting White House chief of staff.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 7 Nov. 2026
  • Claude can also flag unusual transactions, duplicate charges, unexpected fees and bills that have gradually increased.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of unusual
Adjective
  • Opposing candidates mostly made infrequent and brief appearances in articles published by the network that VisionHeight found, NPR's review shows.
    — Huo Jingnan, NPR, 30 Oct. 2026
  • This was our first phone call in years—usually, our exchanges are constrained to happy birthdays on WeChat or confirming the travel logistics of my infrequent visits.
    — Aube Rey Lescure, Longreads, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of infrequent

Browse Nearby Words

occasion
occasional
occasionally
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Occasional.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/occasional. Accessed 10 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of defer

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
woman sitting on floor holding book in front of her face on pink background
Famous Novels, Last Lines Quiz Needless to say, spoiler alert.
See All