Something described as sporadic occurs occasionally, irregularly, or randomly across time or space. The word comes from Medieval Latin sporadicus, which is itself derived from Greek sporadēn, meaning “here and there.” It is also related to the Greek verb speirein (“to sow”), the ancestor from which we get our word spore (the reproductive cell of a fungus, microorganism, or some plants), hinting at the seemingly scattered nature by which such cells spread and germinate. Things like this are why etymology has always fascinated me. (Source: Merriam Webster’s Word of the Day)