English Lexicon

On-and-Off

/ˈɒn ənd ɒf/
adjectiveadverbCEFR B2 (Upper)Top #1500 frequency
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Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As adjective
  1. 1

    Describing something that occurs intermittently or sporadically.

    "The project has been on-and-off for several months due to funding issues."
As adverb
  1. 1

    In an intermittent manner; not continuously.

    "She has been working on the report on-and-off since last week."

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Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

The term 'on-and-off' is a compound phrase that originated in the early 20th century, combining the preposition 'on' and the adverb 'off' to describe something that occurs intermittently. Its usage has evolved to convey a sense of inconsistency or fluctuation in various contexts.

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