English Meaning & Definitions
Occurring at irregular intervals; not continuous or steady.
- “The patient suffered from intermittent fevers that would disappear for days before returning.”
- “We experienced intermittent rain showers throughout the afternoon, forcing us to keep moving our picnic indoors.”
English Antonyms & Opposites
Comprehensive Thesaurus Breakdown
Compare formal, informal, literary synonyms and register nuances for “intermittent”.
Derived from the Latin 'intermittens', the present participle of 'intermittere', meaning 'to send between' or 'to leave off'. It is composed of 'inter-' (between) and 'mittere' (to send). Historically, it was often used in medical contexts to describe fevers that would subside and return.
Think of 'inter' (between) and 'mitt' (like a mitt that catches a ball). The action stops and starts, like a mitt catching and dropping a ball intermittently.
Frequently Asked Questions About “intermittent”
1. What is the meaning of “intermittent” in English?
In English, intermittent (adjective) is defined as: “Occurring at irregular intervals; not continuous or steady.”.
2. How do you use “intermittent” in a sentence?
“The patient suffered from intermittent fevers that would disappear for days before returning.”
3. What are English synonyms of “intermittent”?
4. What is the etymology and word origin of “intermittent”?
Derived from the Latin 'intermittens', the present participle of 'intermittere', meaning 'to send between' or 'to leave off'. It is composed of 'inter-' (between) and 'mittere' (to send). Historically, it was often used in medical contexts to describe fevers that would subside and return.
🇬🇧More English Words to English
View all English words →The base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), equal to the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium-133 atom.
A specific duration of time equal to one hour and forty-six minutes and twelve seconds.
The cardinal number equal to one thousand million (1,000,000,000), expressed in scientific notation as 10^9.
A specific duration of time equivalent to one hour and forty-six minutes.