fitful.

Happening in short, irregular bursts rather than continuing steadily.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• fitful sleep
• fitful light

On the page

Fitful light from the fire moved across the ceiling.

Usage notes

Primary category: literary / elevated general. Forms: Comparative more fitful; superlative most fitful when comparison is meaningful. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Commonness: moderately common.