Intermittently In A Sentence | Clear Usage Rules

You’ve seen intermittently in weather reports, tech notes, and school writing. It’s a small word with a clear job: it tells the reader that something isn’t steady. It pops up, drops out, then comes back again.

This page shows how to use intermittently in a sentence without awkward pacing. You’ll get sentence patterns that sound natural, punctuation choices that read smoothly, and swaps you can use when the word feels too formal.

What Intermittently Means

Intermittently is an adverb built from intermittent. Most dictionaries define it as happening at intervals instead of continuously. Merriam-Webster lists “intermittently” as the adverb form of intermittent and shows it in a short usage line (“raining intermittently”).

When you choose this word, you’re telling the reader three things at once: the action repeats, there are gaps between repeats, and those gaps matter to the meaning. “The lights flickered” is a moment. “The lights flickered intermittently” stretches the moment into a pattern.

Want a clean reference while you write? The Cambridge Dictionary entry for “intermittently” gives a plain meaning and common phrasing you’ll see in edited English.

Intermittently In A Sentence With Clean Placement

Most of the time, your best move is simple: park the adverb close to the verb it modifies. That keeps the reader from guessing what is stop-start.

Placement Pattern	Sample Sentence	When It Reads Best
After the main verb	The Wi-Fi dropped intermittently during the lecture.	Fast, direct reporting of a repeating issue
Before the main verb	The screen intermittently froze while I typed.	When you want the stop-start feel to land early
Between a helper verb and main verb	The printer has intermittently jammed this week.	Formal tone, common in logs and reports
After a verb phrase	She kept coughing intermittently through the test.	When the action runs in the background
Near the sentence start	Intermittently, the power cut out before sunset.	When the timing pattern is the headline idea
Near the sentence end	The engine sputtered on the highway, intermittently.	Rare; use when you want a clipped, afterthought beat
Next to a contrast	The app failed intermittently, not nightly.	When you’re comparing patterns in one line
Paired with a time window	The signal dropped intermittently for two hours.	When the reader needs scope, not just the pattern
Linked to a specific part	The left speaker crackled intermittently at low volume.	When you’re narrowing the issue to one part

This table gives you safe default structures. You can write strong sentences with any of them, as long as the adverb points to one clear action. If you place it too far away, the reader may attach it to the wrong verb.

Choosing The Right Spot In The Sentence

English has flexible adverb placement, yet clarity still wins. Use these checks when you’re unsure.

Keep It Near The Verb It Describes

If your sentence has one main action, you’re in luck. Put intermittently right before or right after that verb. Pick the version that sounds smoother when you read it out loud.

• The router intermittently resets at night.
• The router resets intermittently at night.

When There Are Two Actions, Name The One That Stops And Starts

Sentences often carry a main action and a side action. If you write, “She studied intermittently and passed,” the word could cling to studied or to the whole clause. Fix that by tightening the structure.

• She studied intermittently and still passed the exam.
• She studied through the week and took breaks intermittently.

In the second version, the stop-start pattern clearly belongs to the breaks. The reader doesn’t have to stop and decode your intent.

Use The Start Position Only When You Mean The Whole Scene

Starting with “Intermittently,” can work well, yet it changes the emphasis. It tells the reader, right away, that the timing pattern frames the whole statement.

That opening style fits short reports: “Intermittently, the alarm chirped.” It can feel stiff in casual storytelling, so save it for lines that want a report-like voice.

Punctuation And Rhythm

Most sentences with intermittently don’t need commas. A comma helps when the word sits at the front or when you add a parenthetical beat.

Comma After A Fronted “Intermittently”

When intermittently starts the sentence, a comma usually helps the reader breathe.

• Intermittently, the heater clicked and went quiet.
• Intermittently, my phone showed “No Service” on the train.

No Comma In The Middle Of A Simple Clause

Avoid dropping commas around the adverb in a straightforward sentence. They slow the line and can make it feel fussy.

• Clean: The video buffered intermittently during the call.
• Less clean: The video, buffered intermittently, during the call.

Intermittently Vs Similar Timing Words

Writers often reach for intermittently when they mean “not always.” That can work, yet the word has a sharper edge: it signals gaps you can picture. If something is steady but not frequent, a different adverb may fit better.

Occasionally points to low frequency without the stop-start feel. Periodically hints at a repeat cycle, like a timer. Sporadically suggests irregular timing that’s hard to predict. If your sentence is about gaps in one continuous process, intermittently is the cleanest pick.

Try this test: if you can swap in “off and on” without changing the meaning, you’re in good shape.

Common Slipups And Quick Fixes

Even strong writers trip on this word because it’s easy to over-apply. Here are errors that show up often, plus clean repairs.

Slipup: Using It For One-Time Events

If the action happened once, intermittently is the wrong tool. A one-time event has no gaps.

• Odd: The door slammed intermittently.
• Better: The door slammed once.
• Better: The door kept slamming on and off in the wind.

Slipup: Pairing It With Words That Already Mean “Stop-Start”

Some verbs already carry the stop-start idea, like flicker and stutter. Adding intermittently can still work, yet it may sound padded.

• Heard often: The lights flickered intermittently.
• Tighter: The lights flickered.
• More detail: The lights flickered, then steadied, then flickered again.

Slipup: Letting It Float Too Far From The Verb

Adverbs can drift, and readers will follow the closest action. If your sentence has several verbs, anchor the adverb right beside the one you mean.

• Muddy: I checked the logs and saw errors intermittently after the update.
• Clear: I saw errors intermittently after the update when I checked the logs.

Slipup: Using It As A Catch-All For “Not Often”

Intermittently isn’t the same as rarely. Something can happen intermittently and still happen a lot. The word points to gaps, not low frequency.

If you mean low frequency, use a low-frequency adverb (rarely, seldom) or name the timing (“once a month”). If you mean gaps, keep intermittently.

How Intermittently Sounds In Different Writing Settings

Word choice changes with context. Here are places where intermittently fits naturally, plus places where it can feel out of place.

School Writing And Essays

In essays, intermittently reads like standard academic English when you’re describing patterns: symptoms that come and go, service that cuts out, rainfall that starts and stops. Keep it close to the verb, and avoid stacking it with too many other adverbs.

If you’re writing a lab report or a log, the “has intermittently + past participle” structure is common: “The sensor has intermittently failed.” It’s short and easy to scan.

Emails, Tickets, And Work Notes

In work writing, clarity beats flair. Use a concrete subject (“the audio,” “the checkout page,” “the left earbud”), then pair it with the action and the pattern: “The audio cuts out intermittently.” Add scope if it helps: “during the first minute,” “after sleep mode,” “on public Wi-Fi.”

For a definition link you can share, the Merriam-Webster entry for “intermittent” notes the adverb form, which is where intermittently comes from.

Creative Writing

In fiction, the word can sound clinical. You can still use it, yet it works best in a character voice that fits that tone. If your narrator is casual, “off and on” may land better.

Mini Editing Checklist For Clean Sentences

This is a fast pass you can run in under a minute while editing.

1. Point to one action. If the sentence has multiple verbs, choose the one that stops and starts and place the adverb right beside it.
2. Check timing. Are there repeats with gaps? If not, pick a different word.
3. Trim stacked adverbs. If you have two or three adverbs in one clause, cut until the line reads clean.
4. Read aloud once. If your mouth trips, your reader will too. Shift the adverb closer to the verb or swap it for a shorter phrase.
5. Add scope if needed. A short time window (“for two hours,” “during the call”) can turn a vague complaint into a useful one.

Alternatives That Keep The Meaning

Sometimes intermittently feels too formal for the room. Other times your sentence rhythm wants a shorter beat. Here are reliable swaps and the kind of tone each one gives.

Alternative	Nuance	Common Fit
off and on	casual, conversational	stories, texts, informal notes
now and then	gentle, light frequency	observations, friendly writing
periodically	suggests a repeating cycle	reports, schedules, patterns
sporadically	irregular, hard to predict	troubleshooting notes, news
irregularly	plain, direct, not patterned	formal writing, technical notes
with pauses	focuses on the gaps	instructions, process writing
in bursts	short active stretches	performance notes, behavior logs
from time to time	soft, daily phrasing	emails, personal writing

Pick the swap that matches your meaning. If your point is “stop-start,” keep a term that signals gaps (off and on, with pauses, in bursts). If your point is “not regular,” pick a term that signals irregular timing (sporadically, irregularly).

Practice Lines You Can Borrow

Below are ready-to-use models. Replace the subject and verb with your own details and you’ll still get a sentence that reads clean.

Tech And Devices

• The Bluetooth connection drops intermittently when the phone is in my pocket.
• The charger works intermittently unless the cable is held at an angle.

Daily Life

• My neighbor’s dog barks intermittently during the afternoon.
• The rain fell intermittently, so the sidewalk never fully dried.

School And Work

• The projector has intermittently failed during presentations.
• The network intermittently blocks the login page on mobile data.

If you came here wondering how to fit intermittently in a sentence that sounds natural, these patterns will get you there fast. You can keep the word when the meaning is truly stop-start, or swap it when a simpler beat fits your voice.

One last check: when you use it as a practice prompt, keep the meaning tied to a clear action each time. That small habit keeps your writing sharp.