periodical 1 of 2

adjective

ˌpir-ē-ˈä-di-kəl How to pronounce periodical (audio)
Definition of periodicalnext
1
as in serial
appearing in parts or numbers that follow regularly a periodical town newsletter that is supported by local advertisers

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in recurrent
occurring or appearing at intervals periodical announcements from airline personnel concerning the delay

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in frequent
appearing or occurring repeatedly from time to time periodical visits to the dentist will help keep your teeth healthy

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

periodical

2 of 2

noun

as in newspaper
a publication that appears at regular intervals subscribed to three new periodicals

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of periodical
Adjective
Some of the species found in the U.S. are periodical and spend most of their lives underground. — Liam Gravvat, USA TODAY, 24 Apr. 2024 Wilson: School boards have to make sure they are provided with information on how students are doing with periodical reports throughout the year. — Madeleine Parrish, The Arizona Republic, 2 Oct. 2024
Noun
As of January 1, 2025, a wide range of 1929 artworks have officially entered the public domain, including motion pictures, books, newspapers and periodicals, lectures and sermons, maps, musical compositions, works of fine art, and more. — Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 2 Jan. 2025 The previous definition only included traditional newspapers, periodicals and current magazines that were sold to the public. — Angele Latham, The Tennessean, 20 Dec. 2024 See All Example Sentences for periodical
Recent Examples of Synonyms for periodical
  1. serial
  2. recurrent
  3. frequent
  4. newspaper
  5. recurring
  6. periodic
  7. journal
  8. regular
Adjective
  • The serial killer's brother also turned a letter over to the police in which Jesperson confessed to a total of eight murders.
    — Jessica Sager, People.com, 19 Mar. 2025
  • That comedy, about a father who becomes a serial killer that sucks victims into his rectum, also plumbed an unserious premise for droll laughs and modest surprises.
    — J. Kim Murphy, Variety, 18 Mar. 2025
Definition of serial
Adjective
  • Accurately understanding the political implications of Trump’s presidencies requires treating him as the newest example of a recurrent phenomenon in American political life.
    — Justin Peck / Made by History, TIME, 14 Mar. 2025
  • One is through Subscription solutions, which are the least volatile and include recurrent revenue from POS terminals, websites, apps, and domain subscriptions.
    — GuruFocus, Forbes, 12 Mar. 2025
Definition of recurrent
Adjective
  • The expansion of both international and local production has increased the availability of skilled crew members in the Dominican Republic, trained either through hands-on experience or frequent workshops.
    — Anna Marie de la Fuente, Variety, 19 Mar. 2025
  • But a report released in February found that this plan may no longer be viable due to the rate of sea level rise and frequent droughts, which reporter Jon Hurdle covered for ICN earlier this month.
    — Ars Technica, Ars Technica, 19 Mar. 2025
Definition of frequent
Noun
  • Yousef has also publicly criticized Hamas’ decision to attack Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the newspaper reported.
    — Phil Helsel, NBC News, 21 Mar. 2025
  • Its media portfolio comprises newspapers and magazines including Sunset, Defense News, Military Times and broadcaster Cheddar TV.
    — Todd Spangler, Variety, 21 Mar. 2025
Definition of newspaper
Adjective
  • The strange makeup of recurring dreams Research has found that most recurring dreams have a negative tone with themes often related to helplessness, failure, or being chased.
    — Stacey Colino, TIME, 4 Mar. 2025
  • Anxiety about pocketbook issues, however, formed a recurring and persistent theme.
    — David Lauter, Los Angeles Times, 21 Sep. 2024
Definition of recurring
Adjective
  • And in spite of market turbulence caused by Mr. Trump's tariff threats, some experts think stocks are likely to gain strength in the months to come, although not without periodic bouts of volatility.
    — Alain Sherter, CBS News, 19 Mar. 2025
  • Conducting periodic retrospectives, creating an iterative feedback loop with stakeholders, and breaking down your strategy into manageable, agile pieces all helps to maintain alignment and enable progression toward business-objective achievement.
    — Forrester, Forbes, 18 Mar. 2025
Definition of periodic
Noun
  • The team's research was published in February in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics.
    — Robert Lea, Space.com, 21 Mar. 2025
  • Scientists used data from planes, satellites, ships, and dog sleds to create the map and then published the results on March 12 in the Scientific Data journal.
    — Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025
Definition of journal
Adjective
  • Lincoln-Way Central had a tougher regular season last spring but went a round deeper in the playoffs, finishing 11-6-3 with another loss to Andrew in a sectional final.
    — Steve Millar, Chicago Tribune, 18 Mar. 2025
  • UConn closed out the Big East regular season with five wins in a row to move up to third in the league standings.
    — Tim Casey, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2025
Definition of regular

Browse Nearby Words

periodical
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Periodical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/periodical. Accessed 25 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on periodical

Nglish: Translation of periodical for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Words You Always Have to Look Up
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular Features

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
dog-in-disguise
Rhyme Disguise Quiz Pair up words that look different but sound alike.
See All