Word
discontinuous
Phoneticsdis·con·tin·u·ous
Definition
adj. having breaks or gaps instead of continuing smoothly without stopping. You use it for lines, sounds, or paths that stop and start again.
adj. interrupted by breaks, gaps, or sudden changes rather than continuing smoothly. In mathematics, describes a function or curve with one or more points where it breaks or jumps.
Examples
“The path becomes discontinuous behind the hill.”
“The hiking trail turns discontinuous where floods wash away the markers and break the route.”
“The historical record remains discontinuous across the war years, with missing letters and broken timelines that force scholars to fill the gaps with care.”
Examples
simple
“The path becomes discontinuous behind the hill.”
contextual
“The hiking trail turns discontinuous where floods wash away the markers and break the route.”
complex
“The historical record remains discontinuous across the war years, with missing letters and broken timelines that force scholars to fill the gaps with care.”
Collocations
Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “discontinuous” in context.
Verb
01. appear discontinuous
“The path appears discontinuous on the old map.”
verb + adj
02. become discontinuous
“The trail becomes discontinuous after the river crossing.”
verb + adj
Adjective
03. fundamentally discontinuous
“Time at the quantum level may be fundamentally discontinuous.”
adv + adj
04. highly discontinuous
“The fossil record is highly discontinuous across this rock layer.”
adv + adj
Noun
05. discontinuous distribution
“The plant shows a discontinuous distribution across the islands.”
adj + noun
06. discontinuous function
“In calculus, we learned to identify a discontinuous function.”
adj + noun
07. discontinuous line
“The map shows a discontinuous line marking the old border.”
adj + noun
08. discontinuous path
“They followed a discontinuous path through the dense forest.”
adj + noun
09. discontinuous sequence
“He heard a discontinuous sequence of beeps from the machine.”
adj + noun
10. discontinuous sound
“A discontinuous sound came from the faulty speaker.”
adj + noun
11. become discontinuous at point
“The graph becomes discontinuous at the point where x equals zero.”
12. discontinuous sequence of sounds
“The monitor emitted a discontinuous sequence of sounds.”
Real-World Examples
“Smooth fluid flows routinely develop shock waves, for example, where the flow becomes discontinuous — velocity or pressure changing sharply over a microscopic distance.” “Discontinuous permafrost is found in patches.” Etymology
From dis- + continuous.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Related words
Domain
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.C1 AdvancedIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.7.0–8.0TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 5.0–5.595–113TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.945–990
- Frequency
- Occasional
- Level
- C1 · Advanced
- Updated
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QR code
englishreference.com/q/discontinuous