sporadically

adverb

spo·​rad·​i·​cal·​ly spə-ˈra-di-k(ə-)lē How to pronounce sporadically (audio)
: in a sporadic manner : not regularly or constantly
gunfire being heard sporadically
software updates that appear sporadically
Originally from the western Pacific Ocean, the shrimp have been spotted sporadically in U.S. waters for the past two decades.Rick Jervis
Even when the sun is being well behaved, parcels of plasma shoot sporadically toward Earth's dark side, prompting a bright aurora and intensifying radiation belts.Tim Beardsley

Examples of sporadically in a Sentence

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Reduced to occasionally doing commercials for used cars, and spending most of his days drinking, despairing, and sporadically playing Russian roulette in a retirement home for actors, the curmudgeonly Montana has a death wish that only sheer luck has kept him from fulfilling. Joe Leydon, Variety, 5 Mar. 2025 So, what does a real-deal capital-A artist wear to an event like the Oscars that is only sporadically about art (and more frequently about commerce)? Dave Schilling, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2025 Using an Arabic language interpreter sporadically throughout her testimony, Shaheen detailed the attack for the jury. Michelle Mullins, Chicago Tribune, 26 Feb. 2025 Though no human bird flu cases have been detected in San Diego County, the virus has increasingly shown up in species other than birds, with cattle now widely infected and cases sporadically appearing in felines. Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for sporadically

Word History

First Known Use

1681, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of sporadically was in 1681

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Cite this Entry

“Sporadically.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sporadically. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.

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