as in on and off
not constantly or steadily over a period of time
They've been dating off and on for almost a year.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of off and on
However, just as with the NSA advice for smartphone users to turn it off and on again, a single piece of advice is never going to be enough to provide anything more than surface-level protection.
—
Davey Winder, Forbes, 24 Oct. 2024
Rain will continue Saturday, Sunday and Monday, off and on, and is expected to peak Monday night into Tuesday, with dry conditions Wednesday and more on Thursday.
—Paul Rogers, The Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2025
After turning the router off and on again, many devices, including my Pixel and iPhone, struggled to reconnect.
—Simon Hill, WIRED, 5 Jan. 2025
Turning your device off and on weekly, this stated, can be used to prevent or mitigate spearphishing to install malware and/or zero-click exploits.
—Davey Winder, Forbes, 26 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for off and on 
Davey Winder, Forbes, 24 Oct. 2024
Rain will continue Saturday, Sunday and Monday, off and on, and is expected to peak Monday night into Tuesday, with dry conditions Wednesday and more on Thursday.
—Paul Rogers, The Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2025
After turning the router off and on again, many devices, including my Pixel and iPhone, struggled to reconnect.
—Simon Hill, WIRED, 5 Jan. 2025
Turning your device off and on weekly, this stated, can be used to prevent or mitigate spearphishing to install malware and/or zero-click exploits.
—Davey Winder, Forbes, 26 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for off and on
Recent Examples of Synonyms for off and on
Adverb
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Dinner parties, on the other hand, occur sporadically with more off-the-cuff planning.—
Kaitlyn Yarborough,
Southern Living,
7 Feb. 2025
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The egg shortages are likely to continue sporadically into the future, Emily Metz, president and CEO of the American Egg Board, told Fox News Digital.—
Christine Rousselle,
Fox News,
7 Feb. 2025
Adverb
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Smith wore a dark suit off the runway, printed with an oversized burgundy polka dot patten, leaning in to whisper to Kesha periodically.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA TODAY,
8 Feb. 2025
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This means that the virus doesn't just stick around on poultry farms and periodically jump over into wildlife, but can sustain itself in wild birds, moving from one flock to the next without burning itself out.—
Gabrielle Emanuel,
NPR,
7 Feb. 2025
Adverb
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Crowning a champion The Cup Series champion is the season’s big winner but rarely the winningest driver.—
Edgar Thompson,
Orlando Sentinel,
9 Feb. 2025
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People rarely are presented as good or bad in certain clothes.—
Julian Randall,
Essence,
9 Feb. 2025
Adverb
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Unfortunately, the movie seldom hides its seams for the physical work that’s beyond her capabilities.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
16 Feb. 2025
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The escalating tension of that final act is as shocking and violent and viciously cold as anything in Franco’s filmography, which has seldom shied away from stark depictions of human cruelty — whether intimate in scale, like After Lucia, or encompassing explosive societal conflict, like New Order.—
David Rooney,
The Hollywood Reporter,
15 Feb. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near off and on
Cite this Entry
“Off and on.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/off%20and%20on. Accessed 22 Feb. 2025.
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