seldom
/ˈsɛldəm
/adverb
Not often; rarely: Islay is seldom visited by tourists he was seldom absent [in combination]: an old seldom-used church...
- An eclectic palette of samples etched out paths seldom visited in accessible forms.
- Neighbours said they seldom saw the couple and that the daughters seldom visited them.
- The actors seldom move: they are like tortured figures on a frieze in a besieged acropolis.
Synonyms
rarely, infrequently, on rare occasions, hardly ever, scarcely ever, hardly, scarcely, almost never, (every) once in a while, only now and then, not often, only occasionally, sporadically
informal once in a blue moon
adjective [attributive] dated
Not common; infrequent: a great but seldom pleasure
Origin
Old English seldan, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch zelden and German selten, from a base meaning 'strange, wonderful'.