as in off and on
not constantly or steadily over a period of time
It's been raining on and off all afternoon.
Related Words
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Dissimilar Words
as in recurrent
occurring or appearing at intervals
an on-and-off friendship over the years
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of on and off
Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2025
Tran dated Chris Brown in an on-and-off relationship from 2011 to 2015, and was previously linked to Rob Kardashian.
—Angel Saunders, People.com, 29 Aug. 2025
The experience reminded me of a part from Happy Together, a Wong Kar-wai movie about a deeply fraught, on-and-off romantic relationship between two men.
—Tao Lin, Harpers Magazine, 20 Aug. 2025
That lane was impacted not just by the on-and-off tariffs starting in April, but also the closure of the de minimis trade exemption for Chinese goods on May 2.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 14 Aug. 2025
Rocky’s creative ambitions left a lasting impression on his younger castmate Elijah Wright, son of Jeffrey Wright, both on-and-off the call sheet.
—Antonio Ferme, Variety, 13 Aug. 2025
In the Arrowverse, Haynes plays Roy Harper (Arsenal), a vigilante who is inspired by Oliver Queen and is involved in an on-and-off relationship with Thea Queen.
—Armando Tinoco, Deadline, 12 Aug. 2025
Adjective
The on-and-off couple welcomed their first child, Saga Blade Fox-Baker, in March.
—Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2025
Tran dated Chris Brown in an on-and-off relationship from 2011 to 2015, and was previously linked to Rob Kardashian.
—Angel Saunders, People.com, 29 Aug. 2025
The experience reminded me of a part from Happy Together, a Wong Kar-wai movie about a deeply fraught, on-and-off romantic relationship between two men.
—Tao Lin, Harpers Magazine, 20 Aug. 2025
That lane was impacted not just by the on-and-off tariffs starting in April, but also the closure of the de minimis trade exemption for Chinese goods on May 2.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 14 Aug. 2025
Rocky’s creative ambitions left a lasting impression on his younger castmate Elijah Wright, son of Jeffrey Wright, both on-and-off the call sheet.
—Antonio Ferme, Variety, 13 Aug. 2025
In the Arrowverse, Haynes plays Roy Harper (Arsenal), a vigilante who is inspired by Oliver Queen and is involved in an on-and-off relationship with Thea Queen.
—Armando Tinoco, Deadline, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for on and off
Adverb
-
But its replacement, which happened to be the only spare at the time, worked perfectly for six weeks and then off and on for several more years.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
28 Aug. 2025
-
Ray has been with me for 12 years off and on.—
Demetrius Patterson,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
The results showed no significant differences between the two groups in rates of death, recurrent heart attack or hospitalization for heart failure.—
Hannah Millington,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 Sep. 2025
-
Using advanced recurrent networks, researchers mapped inner speech into recognizable words, hitting conversational-level performance.—
Jason Snyder,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
Adverb
-
Lay the broken pieces in a pattern or sporadically for a mosaic look.—
Claire Hoppe Norgaard,
Better Homes & Gardens,
21 Aug. 2025
-
The narrative sporadically darts into his consciousness, reflecting a conflicted conscience and a degree of interiority that make the book revolutionary.—
Lauren Groff,
The Atlantic,
20 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Audiences can also expect a new teacher, Luke Tennie’s Dominic, and potentially more recurring and guest characters.—
Natalie Oganesyan,
Deadline,
6 Sep. 2025
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This should further increase the bank's base of more recurring revenue streams.—
Lisa Kailai Han,
CNBC,
27 Aug. 2025
Adverb
-
Mating season is February to April, and females will lay one or two eggs per day intermittently during that period.—
Ashley Mackin Solomon,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 Sep. 2025
-
For some, the pause is only temporary because their Starlink dish is used intermittently for RV or camping trips.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The virus, which is spread by bodily fluids, is endemic in animal populations in Central and West Africa, and there are periodic outbreaks.—
Matthew Martin,
semafor.com,
7 Sep. 2025
-
Over time, the gamma-ray flux from the Moon fluctuates by about 20% due to these periodic changes in the Sun’s magnetic field.—
Ethan Siegel,
Big Think,
4 Sep. 2025
Adverb
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In 1983 magma built enough pressure that Kilauea opened a vent at a lower elevation and started continuously leaking lava from there rather than periodically shooting out from a higher elevation.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
2 Sep. 2025
-
Sting went on to become a successful solo act, reconnecting periodically with his Police bandmates to play shows and delight their still-loyal fans, most notably in 2007 for a reunion tour.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Meanwhile, subsidies continue to favor intermittent renewables over firm capacity.—
Robert Rapier,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
-
Among the variations to consider are situations where one career takes the most time, or one is intermittent, or both are part-time or perhaps seasonal.—
Amy Lindgren,
Twin Cities,
6 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“On and off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/on%20and%20off. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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