sporadically

adverb

spo·​rad·​i·​cal·​ly spə-ˈra-di-k(ə-)lē 

: 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

Recent Examples on the Web

Johns takes another early round loss, and seems content to play singles only sporadically in 2025. —Todd Boss, Forbes, 10 Mar. 2025

After that, it was used sporadically over the years for an array of warehouse operations. —George Avalos, The Mercury News, 14 Feb. 2025

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

Word History

First Known Use

1681, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for sporadically

• radically