intermittently
intermittently — adjective
1. happening at irregular times, not in a continuous or steady way — for example, r
happening at irregular times, not in a continuous or steady way — for example, rain that stops and starts, or a pain that comes and goes
Sofia's job involved intermittent periods of intense work followed by quiet weeks.
intermittent + periods — common noun collocation
The intermittent pain in Kwame's knee kept him from training for the marathon.
Diego relied on an intermittent bus service that arrived roughly every hour.
The intermittent sound of police sirens kept Yuki awake all night.
After the earthquake, the city had intermittent electricity for several weeks.
- sporadic
suggests isolated occurrences with no predictable pattern
- irregular
focuses on lack of fixed schedule rather than stop-start nature
- occasional
implies lower frequency, not necessarily a repeated stop-start cycle
- fitful
adds a sense of restlessness or abrupt starting and stopping
- continuous
without any breaks or interruptions
- constant
happening all the time without changing
- steady
regular and even in occurrence
用法筆記
This adjective is less common in everyday speech than the adverb form 'intermittently'. It most often appears with nouns describing weather (rain, showers), systems (service, electricity, signal), and bodily sensations (pain, pulse).
常見錯誤
intermittently — adverb
1. in a way that stops and starts repeatedly over time, with pauses in between rath
in a way that stops and starts repeatedly over time, with pauses in between rather than happening without interruption
The hotel Wi-Fi worked only intermittently, much to Amara's frustration.
worked + intermittently — common verb+adverb pairing with functioning verbs
Rain fell intermittently throughout the afternoon, so Lucia kept her umbrella close.
The old refrigerator hummed intermittently, waking Fatima up several times each night.
Omar checked his phone intermittently while waiting for the test results.
The lighthouse beam flashed intermittently across the dark water, guiding ships to safety.
- sporadically
implies scattered, unpredictable occurrences with no rhythm
- irregularly
focuses on lack of a fixed schedule
- fitfully
suggests restless or uneasy starting and stopping, especially with sleep
- off and on
more informal, describes the same stop-start pattern in everyday speech
- continuously
without any breaks or pauses
- steadily
in a regular, even manner
- constantly
all the time, without interruption
用法筆記
This is the most commonly used form in the word family. It frequently pairs with verbs of functioning (works, operates), sensing (flashes, sounds, hums), or occurring (falls, happens). Unlike the adjective, it directly modifies action verbs.