intermittently

Intermittently is an adverb used to describe actions or events that occur at irregular or occasional intervals, with pauses separating episodes of activity. It implies a non continuous pattern, in contrast to steadily or constantly. The term can apply to phenomena in daily life, technical systems, or medical conditions.

Etymology and usage: Intermittent originates from Latin intermittens, from intermittere "to stop between" or "to send between." The adverb intermittently formed by adding -ly to the adjective intermittent. In scholarly or technical writing, it characterizes processes that do not run without interruption.

Applications: In medicine, patients may experience intermittent pain, coughs, or fever spikes. In engineering and information technology, systems may suffer intermittent outages or faults that disappear and reappear. In natural and built environments, weather events such as intermittent rain or streams that alternate between flowing and dry periods are described this way. In media or daily plans, intermittent delays may occur.

Usage notes: Intermittently often pairs with verbs such as occur, appear, stop, or function, and with modifiers like brief, occasional, or erratic. It signals uncertainty about timing but clarity about non-continuity. It should not be confused with frequently or periodically, which imply more regular patterns.

Examples: The power supply failed intermittently, causing the device to reset. The battery drains intermittently, making diagnostic tests challenging.