seasonally
UK[ˈsiːzənəli]US[ˈsiːzənəli]
adv
At a particular time or times of the year, or in a way that relates to the seasons
Morpheme Breakdown
season
al
ly
season
time of year
al
adjective suffix
ly
adverb suffix
Etymology
The word 'seasonally' embeds the agricultural rhythm of ancient life within its modern, abstract meaning. Its core, 'season', originates from the Latin sationem, meaning "a sowing," which reflects the critical, time-bound act of planting seeds. Over centuries in Old French and Middle English, the term broadened from referring specifically to sowing time to denote any of the four natural divisions of the year, periods marked by characteristic weather and conditions. The addition of the adjectival suffix '-al' and the adverbial '-ly' then transformed this noun into a modifier, 'seasonally', which describes actions or phenomena occurring in a manner characteristic of or limited to a particular season, thus extending the concept of cyclical, timed events from farming to all aspects of life and nature.
Analysis
Structure: season (time of year) + al (adjective suffix) + ly (adverb suffix)
- season: From Old French seson, seison, ultimately from Latin sationem (a sowing), a noun of action from serere (to sow). In the word, it functions as the core noun root.
- al: A suffix of Latin origin (-alis) used to form adjectives meaning "of or pertaining to."
- ly: A suffix of Old English origin (-lice) used to form adverbs from adjectives, meaning "in a manner of."
Examples
The fruit is only available seasonally, typically in late summer.
Many animals migrate seasonally to find food and better climates.
The resort employs staff seasonally to handle the influx of summer tourists.