bursty

Meanings

1. 1adjectivecomparabletechnical

   Happening in short, intense periods rather than at a steady rate.

   Grammar: Used before a noun or after a linking verb: bursty traffic / The traffic is bursty.

   Patterns

   • bursty traffic
   • bursty data
   • bursty behavior

   Network engineers must design for bursty traffic that spikes during peak hours.

   The data is bursty, arriving in large clumps rather than a smooth stream.

   Email is a bursty form of communication: long silences followed by quick exchanges.

2. 2adjectivecomparableinformal

   Characterized by sudden, short bursts of activity or energy.

   Grammar: Often describes work patterns or behavior: a bursty workflow.

   Patterns

   • a bursty workflow
   • bursty work patterns

   Her work style is bursty: she concentrates intensely for an hour, then takes a long break.

   The team's progress was bursty, with sudden pushes before each deadline.

Word forms

Common combinations

bursty traffic

The network struggles with bursty traffic during video calls.

bursty data

Sensors produce bursty data that is hard to analyze in real time.

bursty behavior

The system's bursty behavior makes it difficult to predict.

highly bursty

Web browsing is highly bursty compared to streaming.

Synonyms and how they differ

spiky

Used in technical contexts to describe data with sudden peaks; similar but often refers to the shape of a graph.

intermittent

Means stopping and starting, but not necessarily in intense bursts.

irregular

More general; means not even or steady, but does not imply short intense periods.

Opposites

Word family

burst noun

A short, sudden period of activity or energy.

burst verb

To break open suddenly or to do something suddenly.

burstiness noun

The quality of being bursty; used in technical writing.

Commonly confused: bursty or busty?

Practice

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