seldom

Meaning

Adv

Infrequently, rarely.

Adj

Rare; infrequent.

Synonyms

rarely

infrequently

rare

not often

scarce

occasionally

hardly

little

scarcely

infrequent

few

🤏

once in a while

at long intervals

unoften

scarcity

sometimes

sparse

thoughtless

unusually

not likely

not very often

a few times

seld

a little

barely

blue moon

careless

exceptionally

from time to time

insufficient

much

never

now and then

once in a blue moon

reckless

scarcely ever

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈsɛldəm/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: seldom

Inherited from Old English: seldan

Cognate with Saterland Frisian: säilden

Cognate with Western Frisian: selden

Cognate with Dutch: zelden

Cognate with German: selten

Cognate with Danish: sjælden

Cognate with Norwegian: sjelden

Cognate with Swedish: sällan

Cognate with Faroese: sjáldan

Cognate with Icelandic: sjaldan

In summary

From late Middle English seldom, alteration of earlier selden, from Old English seldan (“seldom”), from Proto-Germanic *seldanē. Cognate with Saterland Frisian säilden (“seldom”), West Frisian selden, komselden (“rare, seldom”), Dutch zelden, German selten, Danish sjælden, Norwegian sjelden, Swedish sällan, Faroese sjáldan, Icelandic sjaldan. More at seld and selly.