infrequent

adjective

in·​fre·​quent (ˌ)in-ˈfrē-kwənt 

1

: seldom happening or occurring : rare

2

: placed or occurring at wide intervals in space or time

a slope dotted with infrequent pines

infrequent visits

infrequently adverb

Synonyms

• isolated
• occasional
• odd
• rare
• sporadic

Choose the Right Synonym for infrequent

infrequent, uncommon, scarce, rare, sporadic mean not common or abundant.

infrequent implies occurrence at wide intervals in space or time.

infrequent family visits

uncommon suggests a frequency below normal expectation.

smallpox is now uncommon in many countries

scarce implies falling short of a standard or required abundance.

jobs were scarce during the Depression

rare suggests extreme scarcity or infrequency and often implies consequent high value.

rare first editions

sporadic implies occurrence in scattered instances or isolated outbursts.

sporadic cases of influenza

Examples of infrequent in a Sentence

We made infrequent stops along the way.

a shut-in who made infrequent trips to the store

Recent Examples on the Web

Lara Trump, in announcing her decision to step down on Sunday night, touted her work on fundraising, election integrity and encouraging millions of Americans and infrequent voters to turn up during early voting. —Julia Gomez, USA TODAY, 9 Dec. 2024

Stools may also be infrequent, such as having fewer than three bowel movements a week.2 A set of guidelines called the Rome IV criteria is used to diagnose IBS and its subtypes. —Amber J. Tresca, Verywell Health, 1 Dec. 2024

What’s missing is pregame accountability in the form of being aggressive, as well as focusing to a degree on how dumb mistakes are infrequent mistakes. —Steve Buckley, The Athletic, 25 Nov. 2024

Despite their infrequent participation, Latinos in Pennsylvania have voted more for the Democratic Party than for the Republican Party, Jones-Correa said. —Nicole Acevedo, NBC News, 23 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin infrequent-, infrequens, from in- + frequent-, frequens frequent

First Known Use

1622, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing infrequent

• not infrequent

Kids Definition

infrequent

adjective

in·​fre·​quent (ˈ)in-ˈfrē-kwənt 

1

: seldom happening or occurring

2

: not placed, made, or done at frequent intervals

made infrequent stops

infrequently adverb