pe·ri·od·i·cal
ˌpir-ē-ˈä-di-kəl 
2
a
: published with a fixed interval between the issues or numbers
b
: published in, characteristic of, or connected with a periodical
: a periodical publication
Synonyms
Examples of periodical in a Sentence
Adjective
a periodical town newsletter that is supported by local advertisers
periodical announcements from airline personnel concerning the delay
Noun
She writes for a monthly periodical.
The library has a large collection of scholarly periodicals.
Recent Examples on the Web
Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Apr. 2024
Entomologists estimate that the dual emergence could bring trillions of cicadas above ground by late May, at the peak of their periodical breeding time of four to six weeks.
—Andy Fies, ABC News, 7 Apr. 2024
These periodical pauses seem to be missing in both the earliest dinosaurs as well as in in some of the non-dinosaurs that lived alongside them.
—Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024
Most years, at least one of these 15 broods emerges (annual cicadas, not to be confused with their smaller periodical cousins, pop up separately every summer).
—Celia Ford, WIRED, 28 Mar. 2024
There are also seven periodical species of cicadas in North America: three that emerge once every 17 years and four species that emerge once every 13 years.
—Journal Sentinel, 16 Feb. 2024
These types of cicadas are periodical insects that spend most of their lives underground feeding on tree roots.
—Denise Chow, NBC News, 20 Jan. 2024
Jason didn't see much of his dad during his early childhood
While Coni and Jason lived in Iowa, Joseph made periodical visits.
—Chris Alexis, Peoplemag, 25 Nov. 2023
Hopkins was a literary path-breaker, working as a periodical editor and publisher and as a race-issues novelist when these roles were barely open to women.
—New York Times, 12 Oct. 2023
Kate Golembiewski, CNN, 10 Apr. 2024
Before World, a biweekly, was launched in 1986, religious periodicals were often cheaply mimeographed and filled with church news.
—Michael S. Rosenwald, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2024
In pure numbers—books, not victims—Stalin comes out ahead, having owned some twenty-five thousand, including periodicals and pamphlets.
—Claudia Roth Pierpont, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2024
Collins joined the staff of Dickens’ magazine Household Words, and the pair co-wrote plays and stories for periodicals.
—Katherine Hobbs, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Jan. 2024
For them, this find is validation that their collection of nearly 4 million books, newspapers, periodicals, manuscripts, and pamphlets is a boon to researchers studying early American history.
—Michael Casey, The Christian Science Monitor, 18 Jan. 2024
Soon, Carlson was writing for the Policy Review, a periodical published by the Heritage Foundation, followed by The Weekly Standard, Esquire, and New York, while also becoming the youngest anchor on CNN.
—Evan Osnos, The New Yorker, 22 Jan. 2024
According to the National Women’s History Museum, family finances were tight — but the Days still subscribed to The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, and other periodicals, which young Sandra read with her mother.
O’Connor attended school in El Paso but returned to the ranch during summers.
—Steven P. Dinkin, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Dec. 2023
In parallel, some parents believe that these AI characters are the 2023 equivalent of the slick Joe Camel cartoons, which ran as advertisements in periodicals with large children readerships to softly introduce youth to smoking from 1988 through the 1990s.
—Alexandra Sternlicht, Fortune, 17 Nov. 2023
Adjective
While annual cicadas appear every year, periodical broods only emerge in certain years and wait until the soil temperature reaches 65 degrees Fahrenheit, per National Geographic.
—Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Apr. 2024
Entomologists estimate that the dual emergence could bring trillions of cicadas above ground by late May, at the peak of their periodical breeding time of four to six weeks.
—Andy Fies, ABC News, 7 Apr. 2024
These periodical pauses seem to be missing in both the earliest dinosaurs as well as in in some of the non-dinosaurs that lived alongside them.
—Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 3 Apr. 2024
Most years, at least one of these 15 broods emerges (annual cicadas, not to be confused with their smaller periodical cousins, pop up separately every summer).
—Celia Ford, WIRED, 28 Mar. 2024
There are also seven periodical species of cicadas in North America: three that emerge once every 17 years and four species that emerge once every 13 years.
—Journal Sentinel, 16 Feb. 2024
These types of cicadas are periodical insects that spend most of their lives underground feeding on tree roots.
—Denise Chow, NBC News, 20 Jan. 2024
Jason didn't see much of his dad during his early childhood
While Coni and Jason lived in Iowa, Joseph made periodical visits.
—Chris Alexis, Peoplemag, 25 Nov. 2023
Hopkins was a literary path-breaker, working as a periodical editor and publisher and as a race-issues novelist when these roles were barely open to women.
—New York Times, 12 Oct. 2023
Noun
Annuals tend to emerge later in the year than periodicals.
—Kate Golembiewski, CNN, 10 Apr. 2024
Before World, a biweekly, was launched in 1986, religious periodicals were often cheaply mimeographed and filled with church news.
—Michael S. Rosenwald, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2024
In pure numbers—books, not victims—Stalin comes out ahead, having owned some twenty-five thousand, including periodicals and pamphlets.
—Claudia Roth Pierpont, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2024
Collins joined the staff of Dickens’ magazine Household Words, and the pair co-wrote plays and stories for periodicals.
—Katherine Hobbs, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Jan. 2024
For them, this find is validation that their collection of nearly 4 million books, newspapers, periodicals, manuscripts, and pamphlets is a boon to researchers studying early American history.
—Michael Casey, The Christian Science Monitor, 18 Jan. 2024
Soon, Carlson was writing for the Policy Review, a periodical published by the Heritage Foundation, followed by The Weekly Standard, Esquire, and New York, while also becoming the youngest anchor on CNN.
—Evan Osnos, The New Yorker, 22 Jan. 2024
According to the National Women’s History Museum, family finances were tight — but the Days still subscribed to The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, and other periodicals, which young Sandra read with her mother.
O’Connor attended school in El Paso but returned to the ranch during summers.
—Steven P. Dinkin, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Dec. 2023
In parallel, some parents believe that these AI characters are the 2023 equivalent of the slick Joe Camel cartoons, which ran as advertisements in periodicals with large children readerships to softly introduce youth to smoking from 1988 through the 1990s.
—Alexandra Sternlicht, Fortune, 17 Nov. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'periodical.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near periodical
Cite this Entry
“Periodical.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/periodical. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
periodical
1 of 2 adjective
pe·ri·od·i·cal
ˌpir-ē-ˈäd-i-kəl
1
2
: published at regular intervals
periodically
adverb
-k(ə-)lē
periodical
2 of 2 noun
: a periodical publication
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