every so often

adv

The verdict

“every so often” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adverb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
14
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Occasionnellement, de manière intermittente, de temps en temps.

Corpus desk

Index FR-every-so-often · every so often · French

every so often · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 14 letters
  • VOW-6 6 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "E" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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 every so often
PropertyValue
Headwordevery so often
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdverb
Letters14
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « every so often » en français

every so oftenn'entre pas dans le top 100.000 du français: zone de termes techniques, archaïques ou rares.

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

Rare enough to double-check

every so often is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadverb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Occasionnellement, de manière intermittente, de temps en temps.".

Zero misspellings are on record for every so often in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable French rules. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is every so often, spelled E-V-E-R-Y- -S-O- -O-F-T-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Occasionnellement, de manière intermittente, de temps en temps.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. The actual words are extremely hard to grip on to. You can hear the audience dutifully applauding every so often, from which I concluded that a rather undramatic cricket match was being played at the other end of the hall.

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 "every so often"?
"every so often" is spelled E-V-E-R-Y- -S-O- -O-F-T-E-N.
What does "every so often" mean?
As an adverb, "every so often" means: Occasionnellement, de manière intermittente, de temps en temps.
What language does "every so often" come from?
"every so often" is a French word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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