from time to time

prep_phrase

"from-time-to-time" is a 14-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“from time to time” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a prep_phrase. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
17
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Occasionally; sometimes; once in a while.

Corpus desk

Index EN-from-time-to-time · from time to time · English

from time to time · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 17 letters
  • VOW-6 6 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "F" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for from time to time
PropertyValue
Headwordfrom time to time
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechPrep_phrase
Letters17
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “from time to time” in English

from time to timesits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

from time to time is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as aprep_phrase. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for from time to time in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct English form is from time to time, spelled F-R-O-M- -T-I-M-E- -T-O- -T-I-M-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Occasionally; sometimes; once in a while.
  2. 2
    In whatever status exists at various times.
  3. 3
    Continuously from one time to another; at all times, constantly.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how from time to time appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. I'll find out your man, / And he shall signify from time to time / Every good hap to you that chances here.
  2. On these red embers Hatteraick from time to time threw a handful of twigs.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "from time to time"?
"from time to time" is spelled F-R-O-M- -T-I-M-E- -T-O- -T-I-M-E.
What does "from time to time" mean?
As a prep_phrase, "from time to time" means: Occasionally; sometimes; once in a while.
What language does "from time to time" come from?
"from time to time" is a English word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list