Once in a blue moon

[0427] Every now and then

🎲 Day in, day out
English Idioms
All Idioms

Explanation

  • Occasionally, sometimes, periodically; implies happening more frequently than once in a blue moon but still not regularly or often.

Origin

  • Standard English phrases using common words. Now and then points to intermittent moments in time. So often implies periodically but without a fixed interval.

Synonyms & Related Expressions

  • Occasionally
  • Sometimes
  • From time to time (See 0429)
  • Periodically
  • At times
  • Once in a while
  • Every now and again (esp. UK/Aus/NZ)

Alternatives

Slang/Informal:

  • Once in a while.

Milder/Standard:

  • Occasionally.
  • Sometimes.
  • Periodically.
  • From time to time.

More Precise (if known):

  • A few times a year.
  • About monthly.

Situational Appropriateness

  • Appropriate for virtually all situations, informal to formal. Standard, neutral language.

Misunderstanding Warnings

  • Generally very clear. Key is understanding it means irregular and moderately infrequent.

Examples

  • Every now and then, I like to visit the coast.
  • We eat out every so often, maybe twice a month.
  • He calls his parents every now and again. (Common variant)

Dialogue

Neighbor 1: Do you ever go to that farmer's market downtown?

Neighbor 2: Every now and then. It's nice, but parking is a hassle. We probably go every so often in the summer.

Neighbor 1: Yeah, parking is tough. The produce is great though.

Social Media Examples

  • Tweet: Good to disconnect from screens every now and then. Took a walk in the park today. Felt good. 🌳 #mentalhealth #unplug
  • Facebook Status: Love trying out new recipes every so often. Tonight: homemade pasta! Wish me luck! 🍝 #cooking #foodie

Response Patterns

  • Oh, that's nice.
  • Yeah, me too sometimes.
  • How often would you say? (If seeking more precision)
  • Simple acknowledgement (nod, uh-huh).

Common Follow-up Questions/Actions

  • Might ask for slightly more specific frequency (Like, once a month?).
  • Share a similar habit (I do that too occasionally.).
  • Simply accept the information.

Conversation Starter

  • No. Describes frequency within an ongoing conversation.

Intonation

  • Fairly even stress, natural conversational rhythm. Maybe slight emphasis on NOW and THEN or SO and OF-ten.
  • EVery NOW and THEN. / EVery SO OFten.

Generation Differences

  • Universally used and understood.

Regional Variations

  • Common across all English-speaking regions. Every now and again is a frequent alternative, perhaps slightly more common in BrE/AusE/NZE.
Once in a blue moon
🎲 Day in, day out