often
gb/ˈɔftən/ us/ˈɔftən/
A2
English
~ 300
Senses
0 senses
adverb
A2
property
1
Many times; frequently
Happening many times or regularly.
Usage pattern:
[someone] often [verb] [something]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse 'often' with 'usually'. 'Often' means many times, while 'usually' means most of the time.
Synonyms
frequently (Slightly more formal and common in writing.)
|
regularly (Implies a consistent or scheduled frequency.)
Antonyms
rarely (Indicates something happens almost never or very infrequently.)
|
seldom (A more formal or literary term for rarely.)
Collocations
quite often
|more often than not
|very often
|too often
Themes
daily life
|communication
|core_vocabulary
|time
Examples
- She often visits her grandparents on weekends.
- I often think about moving to another city.
- They often go hiking in the summer.
- We often eat dinner together as a family.
Learner examples
- I often read books at night.
- He often plays football after school.
- We often watch movies on Friday.
- She often drinks tea in the morning.
Grammar
Dictionary form
often
IPA
GB/ˈɔftən/
US/ˈɔftən/
Syllables & stress
of - ten (2 syllables)
Stress on 1st syllable (of)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: often
- Plural: oftens
Word family
Forms
oftens
noun
Related words
Advanced or less common
oftentimes
adverb
Expressions
too often
1/tˈu ˈɔftən/
fixed phrase
Happening excessively or undesirably frequently
Happening more times than is good or wanted.
Examples
- Too often, people ignore the warning signs.
- We eat out too often and spend too much money.
more often than not
1/mˈɔɹ ˈɔftən ðən nˈɑt/
fixed phrase
happens in most cases
Usually; in most situations.
Examples
- More often than not, he arrives late.
- More often than not, she arrives early to meetings.
- More often than not, they choose the cheaper option.
- More often than not, we choose pizza for dinner.
every so often
1/ˈɛvɹi sˈoʊ ˈɔftən/
fixed phrase
Occasionally, from time to time
Sometimes, not regularly or often.
Examples
- I visit my grandparents every so often.
- Every so often, I like to take a day off and relax.
- I check my email every so often during the day.
- Every so often, I like to take a day off.
- We see each other every so often at the market.
- Every so often, we take a short trip out of town.