often

Frequently; many times on different occasions.

Adjective

  1. Frequent.
    • […] it is a melancholy of mine own, compounded of many simples, extracted from many objects, and, indeed, the sundry contemplation of my travels; in which my often rumination wraps me in a most humorous sadness. - c....
    • 1618, Anthony Munday (translator), The Third Booke of Amadis de Gaule by Nicolas de Herberay des Essarts (1542), London, Chapter 2, p. 18, Then came the Ladies to visite him, and the Queene gaue him most gracious...
    • The Shew-bread by an often remove, and renewing, was continually to stand before the Lord in his House […] - 1656, John Bunyan, chapter 48, in Solomon’s Temple Spiritualiz’d, London: George Larkin, published 1688, page...

Origin

From Middle English often, alteration (with final -n added due to analogy with Middle English selden (“seldom”)) of Middle English ofte, oft, from Old English oft (“often”), from Proto-Germanic *ufta, *uftō (“often”). Cognates Cognate with Scots affen, aften, af'en, oaffen, oaften, oftin (“often”), North Frisian aaft, oftem, oofting (“often”), Saterland Frisian oafte (“often”), German, Luxembourgish and Pennsylvania German oft (“often”), Yiddish אָפֿט (oft, “often”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål and Norwegian Nynorsk ofte (“often”), Faroese, Swedish ofta (“often”), Icelandic oft (“often”), Gothic 𐌿𐍆𐍄𐌰 (ufta, “often”).

Forms

more often most often

Related

frequency

Adverb

  1. Frequently; many times on different occasions.
    • I often walk to work when the weather is nice.
    • I’ve been going to the movies more often since a new theatre opened near me.
    • It can't be said too often / often enough.

    Synonyms: a lot oftentimes typically

    Antonyms: infrequently occasionally rarely seldom unoften scarcely seldomly uncommonly

Forms

more often oftener most often oftenest

Synonyms

a lot feelefold frequently manifold manyfold oft often oftenly oftentimes ofttimes repeatedly unseldom

Antonyms

rarely forever occasionally never once

Hyponyms

usually as often as not more often than not hourly daily from day to day monthly

Related

oft frequency

Derived

as often as not do you come here often every so often many a time and often more often than not oftenly oftenness oftentime oftenwhiles proverbs often come in pairs the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry the pitcher goes so often to the well that it is broken at last times and often unoften