# now and then

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/now-and-then
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

Synonym of occasionally, sometimes, intermittently.

## Examples

- I visit my parents now and then.
- Although he prefers to walk, he takes the bus to work now and then when it rains.
- The old lighthouse keeper would gaze out at the horizon, watching the distant ships pass by now and then as the seasons slowly turned.

## Origin

The expression corresponds to the Dutch *nu en dan* and the West Frisian *no en dan*. The construction preserves a Germanic syntactic pattern for indicating intermittent frequency.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.