1
[ adjective ] occurring from time to time

Examples

"took an occasional glass of wine"

Used in print

(Booton Herndon, "From Custer to Korea, The 7th Cavalry"...)

Though there was an occasional good-natured chuckle about Marvin_Goulding , the Jewish officer from Chicago , singing tearfully about the ould sod , no_one really thought it was strange .

(George Harmon Coxe, Error of Judgement....)

Only an occasional tip turned_out to be a phony , and , like the police , Casey had made a point of running_down all such suggestions and he did not hesitate this time .

It was a district of small factories and loft buildings and occasional tenements , and he could see the police_radio_car as he rounded the corner and slammed_on the brakes .

(Peter Field, Rattlesnake Ridge....)

In town no one paid much attention to an occasional shot ; but on the range gunfire had a meaning .

(Ralph J. Salisbury, "On the Old Santa Fe Trail...)

an Ah coudn ansuh him an so Ah said ' Aw_right , Ah gay-ess , an his fathuh did n uttuh one wohd an aftuh Huhmun was gone , the majuh laughed an tole me thet he an the bawh had been hevin an occasional drink t_'_gethuh f ' ovuh a yeah , onleh an occasional one , but just the same it was behahn mah back , an Ah doa n think thet 's nahce at_all , d ' you '' ?

Related terms

infrequent

2
[ adjective ] occurring or appearing at usually irregular intervals

Synonyms

episodic

Examples

"episodic in his affections" "occasional headaches"

Used in print

(Howard Nemerov, "Themes and Methods: The Early...)

The horrifying humor , the specifically sexual embarrassment of the joke gone_wrong , the monstrous image of the fat man dressed_up as a whore dressing_up as a baby ; the epiphany of that quivering flesh ; the bringing_together around it of the secret liaison between indolent , mindless sensuality and sharp , shrewd talent , cleverness with an occasional touch of genius ( which , however , does not know `` how to attack the problem of suffering '' ) ; the miraculous way in which music , revelation and death are associated in a single instant - all this seems a triumph of art , a rather desperate art , in itself ; beyond itself , also , it evokes numerous and distant resonances from the entire body of Mann 's work .

Related terms

unpredictable

3
[ adjective ] employed in a specified capacity from time to time

Synonyms

casual

Examples

"casual employment" "a casual correspondence with a former teacher" "an occasional worker"

Related terms

irregular

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