INTERMITTENT

intermittent

(adjective) stopping and starting at irregular intervals; “intermittent rain showers”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Adjective

intermittent (comparative more intermittent, superlative most intermittent)

Stopping and starting, occuring, or presenting at intervals; coming after a particular time span.

Synonyms: periodic, periodical, patchy, spasmodic

Antonyms: steady, constant, continual

(specifically, geology, of a body of water) Existing only for certain seasons; that is, being dry for part of the year.

Synonyms

• (stopping and starting at intervals): see also discontinuous

Noun

intermittent (plural intermittents)

(medicine, dated) An intermittent fever or disease.

Source: Wiktionary

In`ter*mit"tent, a. Etym: [L. intermittens, -entis, p. pr. of intermittere: cf. F. intermittent.]

Definition: Coming and going at intervals; alternating; recurrent; periodic; as, an intermittent fever. Boyle. Intermittent fever (Med.), a disease with fever which recurs at certain intervals; -- applied particularly to fever and ague. See Fever.

– Intermittent gearing (Mach.), gearing which receives, or produces, intermittent motion.

– Intermittent springs, springs which flow at intervals, not apparently dependent upon rain or drought. They probably owe their intermittent action to their being connected with natural reservoirs in hills or mountains by passages having the form of a siphon, the water beginning to flow when it has accumulated so as to fill the upper part of the siphon, and ceasing when, by running through it, it has fallen below the orifice of the upper part of the siphon in the reservoir.

In`ter*mit"tent, n. (Med.)

Definition: An intermittent fever or disease. Dunglison.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition