English

Adverb

oft ‎(comparative ofter, superlative oftest)

1. (chiefly poetic, dialectal, and in combination) often; frequently; not rarely; many times.

   An oft-told tale

   • 1623, William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well, Act II, Scene 1, 1765, Samuel Johnson, George Steevens (editors), The Plays of William Shakespeare, Volume 4, 1778, page 45,

     What I can do, can do no hurt to try: / Since you ſet up your reſt 'gainſt remedy: / He that of greateſt works is finiſher, / Oft does them by the weakeſt miniſter; / So holy writ in babes hath judgment ſhown, / When judges have been babes.

   • 1819, George Gordon Byron, John Galt (biography), The Pophecy of Dante, Canto the Fourth, 1857, The Complete Works of Lord Byron, Volume 1, page 403,

     And how is it that they, the sons of fame, / Whose inspiration seems to them to shine / From high, they whom the nations oftest name, / Must pass their days in penury or pain, / Or step to grandeur through the paths of shame, / And wear a deeper brand and gaudier chain?

   • 1902, James H. Mulligan, In Kentucky, quoted in 2005, Wade Hall (editor), The Kentucky Anthology, page 203,

     The moonlight falls the softest / In Kentucky; / The summer days come oftest / In Kentucky;

Usage notes

• In widespread contemporary use in combination.

Translations

Related terms

• many a time and oft
• often

Anagrams

• FOT

German

Etymology

From Middle High German ofte, oft, uft, from Old High German ofta, ofto, oftu, from Proto-Germanic *ufta, *uftō ‎(“often”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔft/

Adverb

oft ‎(comparative öfter, superlative am öftesten)

1. often

Usage notes

• The comparative is occasionally replaced with häufiger. The superlative, although correct and existent, is not in widespread usage everywhere and is generally replaced with häufigsten.

Synonyms

• dauernd, des Öfteren, fortgesetzt, gehäuft, häufig, immer wieder, laufend, mehrfach, mehrmalig, mehrmals, öfter, öfters, oftmalig, oftmals, regelmäßig, ständig, vielfach, vielmals, wiederholt, x-mal, zigmal
• (colloquial, figuratively): dutzendfach, dutzendmal, hundertmal, tausendmal, millionenmal

Icelandic

Etymology

From Old Norse oft ‎(“often”) and opt ‎(“oft, often”)

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ɔft

Adverb

oft ‎(comparative oftar, superlative oftast)

1. often

   Ég fer oft í ræktina.

   I often go to the gym.

   Ég er oftast í tölvunni.

   I spend most of my time on the computer.

   Ég hef sigrað oftar en þú!

   I've won more often than you!

Derived terms

• oftar en ekki (more often than not)

Old English

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *ufta

Adverb

oft

1. often

Descendants

Old Norse

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *ufta.

Adverb

oft

1. often

Descendants

Old Saxon

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *ufta

Adverb

oft

1. often

Descendants