sporadic
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Related to sporadic: sporadic disease, sporadic fatal insomnia
spo·rad·ic
(spə-răd′ĭk, spô-)adj.
1. Occurring at irregular intervals or in isolated or scattered places; having no pattern or order: his sporadic attendance in class; rebels who put up sporadic resistance. See Synonyms at periodic.
2. Medicine Not epidemic, endemic, or inherited. Used of a disease or condition: Most cancers are sporadic, caused by genetic mutations that are not heritable.
[Medieval Latin sporadicus, scattered, from Greek sporadikos, from sporas, sporad-; see sper- in Indo-European roots.]
spo·rad′i·cal·ly adv.
spo·rad′i·cal·ness n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
sporadic
(spəˈrædɪk) orsporadical
adj
1. occurring at irregular points in time; intermittent: sporadic firing.
2. scattered; isolated: a sporadic disease.
[C17: from Medieval Latin sporadicus, from Greek sporadikos, from sporas scattered; related to Greek speirein to sow; see spore]
spoˈradically adv
spoˈradicalness n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
spo•rad•ic
(spəˈræd ɪk)adj.
1. appearing or happening at irregular intervals in time; occasional.
2. appearing in scattered or isolated instances.
[1680–90; < Medieval Latin sporadicus < Greek sporadikós <sporad- (s. of sporás strewn, akin to sporá spore)]
spo•rad′i•cal•ly, adv.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
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| Adj. | 1. | sporadic - recurring in scattered and irregular or unpredictable instances; "a city subjected to sporadic bombing raids" noncontinuous, discontinuous - not continuing without interruption in time or space; "discontinuous applause"; "the landscape was a discontinuous mosaic of fields and forest areas"; "he received a somewhat haphazard and discontinuous schooling" infrequent - not frequent; not occurring regularly or at short intervals; "infrequent outbursts of temper" continual - occurring without interruption; chiefly restricted to what recurs regularly or frequently in a prolonged and closely spaced series; "the continual banging of the shutters" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
sporadic
adjective intermittent, occasional, scattered, isolated, random, on and off, irregular, infrequent, spasmodic The sound of sporadic shooting could still be heard.
regular, steady, consistent, frequent, systematic, recurrent
regular, steady, consistent, frequent, systematic, recurrent
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
sporadic
adjective1. Happening or appearing now and then:
Informal: on-again, off-again.
2. Rarely occurring or appearing:
Idiom: few and far between.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
sporadic
[spəˈrædɪk] adj [fighting, violence] → sporadique; [shooting, gunfire, outbreaks] → isolé(e)Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
sporadic
adj → sporadisch; (= occasional also) → gelegentlich; we heard sporadic gunfire → wir hörten gelegentlich Schüsse
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
sporadic
[spəˈrædɪk] adj (attempts, gunfire) → sporadico/a; (work) → discontinuo/aCollins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
spo·rad·ic
a. esporádico-a, infrecuente.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
sporadic
adj esporádicoEnglish-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.