intermittently

/ɪn.tərˈmɪt.ənt.lɪ/

//ɪn.tərˈmɪt.ənt.lɪ// adv

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"intermittently" is a 14-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“intermittently” has 21 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #27,184. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#27,184
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
21
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Stopping or starting at intervals.

Corpus desk

Index EN-intermittently · intermittently · English

intermittently · rank #27,184 · 21 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #27,184
  • LEN-MEGA 14 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 21 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH intelligently

Nearest frequency peer: intelligently (-2 rank slots)

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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “intermittently”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “intermittently” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

intermittently vs intermittent
86% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for intermittently
PropertyValue
Headwordintermittently
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/ɪn.tərˈmɪt.ənt.lɪ/
Letters14
Frequency rank#27,184
Misspellings tracked21
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “intermittently”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).intermittentlylands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “intelligently” (#27,182), “jag” (#27,187), “insistent” (#27,180). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “intermittently” is #27,184. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 21 spelling variants around intermittently (IPA /ɪn.tərˈmɪt.ənt.lɪ/), anadverb. Corpus frequency is #27,184 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Dominant gloss: "Stopping or starting at intervals.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 21 likely wrong-spelling variants for intermittently, with forms such as "inetrmittently", "inntermittently", and "intemrittently". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "intermittent", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From intermittent + -ly. The correct English form is intermittently, spelled I-N-T-E-R-M-I-T-T-E-N-T-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Stopping or starting at intervals.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. The Hariri-Aoun agreement has shown that Hezbollah can bring the national political system to a halt. This happened in the past several years, and it worsened conditions in sectors such as foreign debt, electricity output, rubbish collection, water delivery, and other essential services, to the discomfort of the majority of Lebanese who have spoken out in…

Etymology

From intermittent + -ly.

Synonyms

flakilysporadicallyunreliablydiscontinuously

This word in other languages

intermittemment(Français)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • inetrmittently
  • inntermittently
  • intemrittently
  • interimttently
  • intermitently
  • intermitetntly
  • intermittenlty
  • intermittenntly
  • intermittentlly
  • intermittentlyy
  • intermittenttly
  • intermittentyl
  • intermittetnly
  • intermittnetly
  • intermmittently
  • intermtitently
  • interrmittently
  • intremittently
  • inttermittently
  • itnermittently
  • nitermittently

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of intermittently - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

inetrmittently2inntermittently1intemrittently2interimttently2intermitently1intermitetntly2intermittenlty2intermittenntly1
Edit distance from "intermittently"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "intermittently"?
"intermittently" is spelled I-N-T-E-R-M-I-T-T-E-N-T-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪn.tərˈmɪt.ənt.lɪ/.
What does "intermittently" mean?
As an adverb, "intermittently" means: Stopping or starting at intervals.
What words are commonly confused with "intermittently"?
"intermittently" is commonly confused with "intermittent". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "intermittently"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "intermittently" is /ɪn.tərˈmɪt.ənt.lɪ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "intermittently"?
From intermittent + -ly. See the full etymology section above for more details.
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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "intermittently", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 14 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

unsatisfactory#27,323Leicestershire#26,861indestructible#26,834responsiveness#27,622

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (21 here; floor ≥5).

weightlifting21 variantsWolverhampton21 variantscongregational21 variantsmethodological21 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list