1
obsolete
: characterized by fits or paroxysms
2
: having an erratic or intermittent character : irregular
fitfulness
noun
Synonyms
Examples of fitful in a Sentence
He had a few fitful hours of sleep.
Several fitful attempts at negotiation have failed.
Recent Examples on the Web
Walkers never have to lug their own suitcases or spend a fitful night on the cold, hard ground.
—
Shoshi Parks, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Oct. 2024
Nothing illustrates the point better than the Trump administration’s fitful, scattered, and incremental response to the COVID-19 crisis.
—James B. Steinberg, Foreign Affairs, 9 June 2020
What sets whooping cough apart from other respiratory illness are the prolonged and fitful coughs, which last at least three weeks and can persist for many months, Nolt said.
—Emma Bowman, NPR, 21 Sep. 2024
The pacing is fitful: only toward the end of the first act does the central conflict emerge.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for fitful 
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Shoshi Parks, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Oct. 2024
Nothing illustrates the point better than the Trump administration’s fitful, scattered, and incremental response to the COVID-19 crisis.
—James B. Steinberg, Foreign Affairs, 9 June 2020
What sets whooping cough apart from other respiratory illness are the prolonged and fitful coughs, which last at least three weeks and can persist for many months, Nolt said.
—Emma Bowman, NPR, 21 Sep. 2024
The pacing is fitful: only toward the end of the first act does the central conflict emerge.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for fitful
Dictionary Entries Near fitful
Cite this Entry
“Fitful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fitful. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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