hourly

hourly — adjective

IPA/ˈaʊəli/
KK[ˈaʊrli]IPA/ˈaʊərli/
  • hourlypositive
  • hourliercomparative
  • hourliestsuperlative

1. Happening or done at regular intervals of sixty minutes throughout a day.

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

Happening or done at regular intervals of sixty minutes throughout a day.

Example

The hourly weather report on channel 5 helps Walid plan his fishing trips.

attributive: hourly + noun (report)

Nurses at City Hospital do an hourly check on every patient in the ward.

Common collocations
  • hourly report
  • hourly check
  • hourly reminder
  • hourly bus service
  • hourly news bulletin
Synonyms
  • regular

    Much broader; can mean at any fixed interval (daily, weekly, etc.), not specifically every hour.

  • round-the-clock

    Means continuous (24 hours a day), not once per hour. Much stronger in meaning.

Grammar Patterns

hourly + noun

Usage Note

Typically used before a noun. Common with scheduled transport, medical checks, and media broadcasts.

Common Mistakes

The bus runs every hourly.
The bus runs hourly.
'Every' is redundant because 'hourly' already means 'once every hour'.

2. Relating to or calculated at a rate per hour of work or service, such as a wage,

2.adjectiveB1
Definition

Relating to or calculated at a rate per hour of work or service, such as a wage, fee, or charge.

Example

Christopher earns an hourly wage of fifteen dollars at the campus bookstore.

collocation: hourly wage

The lawyer charges an hourly fee that starts at two hundred and fifty pounds.

collocation: hourly fee

Common collocations
  • hourly wage
  • hourly fee
  • hourly rate
  • hourly pay
  • hourly charge
Synonyms
  • per-hour

    Equivalent in meaning but less common as an attributive adjective; 'per-hour charge' feels more technical.

  • by-the-hour

    Informal equivalent, often hyphenated. 'He prefers by-the-hour work.'

Antonyms
  • salaried

    Paid a fixed annual amount regardless of hours worked, opposite of hourly wage basis.

Grammar Patterns

hourly + noun (wage, fee, rate, pay)

Usage Note

Only used attributively (before a noun). Most common with wage, fee, rate, pay, and charge.

Common Mistakes

She is paid hourly wage.
She is paid an hourly wage.' or 'She is paid by the hour.
'Hourly wage' requires a determiner when used as a noun phrase.

hourly — adverb

IPA/ˈaʊə.li/
KK[ˈaʊrli]IPA/ˈaʊr.li/

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Hourly specifies an exact interval of sixty minutes, making it the most precise of these words. Regular is broader — it can mean any fixed pattern (daily, weekly, monthly) or an evenly spaced rhythm. Frequent does not guarantee equal intervals at all; something can happen every few minutes (frequent) but not regularly or hourly. Daily is the closest sibling in structure: both refer to a specific clock or calendar interval, but daily (every 24 hours) is far more common and cannot substitute for hourly when scheduling public transport or medical routines. For example: 'The hourly bus runs more often than the daily express.'

hourly ↗regular ↗frequent ↗daily ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • on an hourly basis
  • per hour

Etymology

GreekLatinFrenchEnglish

Formed from 'hour' (from Old French 'hore', from Latin 'hōra', from Greek 'hōrā' meaning a season or time of day) plus the suffix '-ly', which turns nouns into adjectives and adverbs indicating 'every [noun]'. The word entered English around the 15th century, first as an adverb ('once an hour') and later as an adjective ('occurring every hour'). The wage-related sense developed alongside industrialisation when employment shifted from daily or piece-rate to per-hour pay.