Something that is intermittent happens occasionally rather than continuously. After three hours of intermittent rain, the game was abandoned. = sporadic + intermittently inter·mit·tent·ly The talks went on intermittently for three years. stopping and starting often and for short periods = sporadic (present participle of intermittere, from mittere )
(Ticaret) Sporadic demand for end items that may also involve low volumes, and requires specific forecast and safety stock or lead time techniques . More typical of to-order than to-stock environments