fitful · adj — characterized by fits (convulsions or seizures). It carries an Arena rating of 1615, earned across 5 head-to-head judged battles.
Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, fitful ranks #1,186 of 17,166 for Most Ingenious Words, #1,605 of 17,166 for Most Malleable Words, #2,041 of 17,150 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #2,478 of 17,152 for Most Elegant Words.
fitful is pronounced /ˈfɪtf(ʊ)l/.
Why “fitful” is a great word
Characterized by intermittent, irregular, and often abrupt bursts of activity or occurrence. From fit ("convulsion, seizure; sudden burst of activity") + -ful (suffix forming adjectives meaning 'full of' or 'characterized by'), first recorded in 1595–1605. Unlike "intermittent," which suggests a neutral, orderly pause and resumption, or "sporadic," which implies scattered, isolated instances, "fitful" carries a tremor of unrest—a sense of something struggling against itself. It is the sputtering flame of a candle in a draft, the agitated sleep of a fever, the start-stop progress of a stalled engine on a cold morning: a chronicle of frustrated, troubled persistence, where each return is both a gasp of relief and a betrayal of steadiness.
❧ Essay by Lexicurio’s AI · definition, etymology & citations from published sources
Etymology
From fit (“convulsion, seizure; sudden burst of activity”) + -ful (suffix forming adjectives from nouns, with the sense of being full of, tending to, or thoroughly possessing the quality expressed by the noun).
adj
- Characterized by fits (convulsions or seizures).
- Characterized by sudden bursts of activity with periods of inactivity in between; intermittent, irregular, unsteady.e.g.“His breathing was fitful.”
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
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