as in on and off
not constantly or steadily over a period of time
They've been dating off and on for almost a year.
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Recent Examples of off and on
Dosunmu is out with a right calf injury, an issue that has plagued him off and on for several weeks.
—
Jon Krawczynski, New York Times, 1 May 2026
The two friends have been going to the annual meeting off and on for roughly 15 years, leaving their husbands at home for a girls' trip to Omaha.
—Sarah Min,yun Li, CNBC, 1 May 2026
Multiple pieces of software and online tutorials exist for the captioning of YouTube videos in addition to instructions for turning the closed captioning feature in YouTube off and on.
—Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Apr. 2026
Reba later got married but still kept in touch with Horner off and on.
—Amy McDaniel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for off and on
Jon Krawczynski, New York Times, 1 May 2026
The two friends have been going to the annual meeting off and on for roughly 15 years, leaving their husbands at home for a girls' trip to Omaha.
—Sarah Min,yun Li, CNBC, 1 May 2026
Multiple pieces of software and online tutorials exist for the captioning of YouTube videos in addition to instructions for turning the closed captioning feature in YouTube off and on.
—Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Apr. 2026
Reba later got married but still kept in touch with Horner off and on.
—Amy McDaniel, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for off and on
Recent Examples of Synonyms for off and on
Adverb
-
The New Jersey native has worked sporadically, including a role in Lifetime’s A Country Christmas Harmony (2022), since easing back into show business.—
JP Mangalindan,
Entertainment Weekly,
10 June 2026
-
Trendy items and playful color combos are fun sporadically, but the beauty mogul reminded us that sometimes simple is best.—
Rachel Trujillo,
PEOPLE,
9 June 2026
Adverb
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Geraniums bloom in the spring and will rebloom intermittently throughout the summer and fall.—
Helena Madden,
Martha Stewart,
6 June 2026
-
The show’s jingles about the virus also play intermittently throughout the day and residents are able to call in with questions.—
Ope Adetayo,
Chicago Tribune,
5 June 2026
Adverb
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Don’t forget to replace the supplies in your emergency kit periodically.—
BestReviews,
Mercury News,
8 June 2026
-
During summers in small towns across America, air sirens will periodically ring out to signal all manner of things.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
6 June 2026
Adverb
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Some are seasonally inappropriate—for instance, winter puffers in a city where the temperature rarely falls below 77 degrees Fahrenheit—or cut for oversized Western silhouettes that dwarf the average Ghanaian body.—
Jasmin Malik Chua,
Footwear News,
8 June 2026
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But the historically complex process has rarely been implemented; between 1990 and 2017, the Justice Department filed an average of just 11 legal complaints per year seeking to denaturalize American citizens, according to historical data.—
Aki Nace,
CBS News,
8 June 2026
Adverb
-
Smith seldom goes back to Weatherford.—
Tanya Babbar,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
10 June 2026
-
Political memoirs are seldom very good.—
David A. Graham,
The Atlantic,
8 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Off and on.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/off%20and%20on. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
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