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