My guesses are: recurring or cyclic order/service.
In what cases would you use one or the other?
Context: A customer can book a one-time service or choose an interval. I'd like to name a service that is not one-time but repeats every week/month etc.
asked Aug 22, 2017 at 10:43
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7I strongly agree with 'recurring service.' Please write it as an answer, @Max Williams, because answers posted as comments may get deleted.– English StudentCommented Aug 22, 2017 at 11:12
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3It's not worth an answer, especially when you already said it in your question.– Max WilliamsCommented Aug 22, 2017 at 11:27
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3Depending on what the service is, sometimes "subscription" is appropriate. For example : "As a platinum service subscriber you will be entitled to monthly product updates and 24/7 telephone support"– J...Commented Aug 22, 2017 at 18:53
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2Why not look at a calendar app on your phone or computer or online and see what term it uses?– k1eranCommented Aug 22, 2017 at 19:17
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1So far none of the answers tackle your question about when you would use one or the other - so I'm going to suggest 'recurring' for services, appointments etc ie events, whereas 'cyclic', IMO suggests something that moves through two or more different states; for instance the lunar cycle, 4-stroke cycle, cycle of the seasons. . .– peterGCommented Aug 22, 2017 at 21:40
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8 Answers
There are several possible words that could be used here:
- regular, as @Lawrence suggests
- periodic (Oxford, definition 1, "Appearing or occurring at intervals.")
- recurring or recurrent, which you used in your question.
- repeating is a perfectly valid word for this use.
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answered Aug 22, 2017 at 11:49
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3This should really be the accepted answer; regular is ok but somewhat ambiguous, because there is even a connotation of "Oh I see him regularly" that only means frequently, not periodically.– msouthCommented Aug 23, 2017 at 4:02
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2Periodic is what I would use when trying to focus on the interval.– IS4Commented Aug 24, 2017 at 20:40
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I'm not a native English speaker, but in mathematics, periodic is the word used for this kind of regularity, something repeating with a constant interval. Isn't periodic also used for magazines that come out every week or month? Therefore I would use periodic.– md2perpeCommented Aug 26, 2017 at 12:28
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It's a regular service.
regular adjective 2 Recurring at uniform intervals. ‘a regular monthly check’ - ODO
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5To me, while this does indicate the type of service that is performed at regular intervals, it does not by-itself unambiguously indicate the recurring nature of an appointment. If someone says "we'll schedule your regular service for the 12th" I would not be 100% clear whether subsequent appointments would automatically fall on the 12th. At least, it would be more likely to interpret that if they said "we'll schedule recurring service on the 12th" Commented Aug 22, 2017 at 20:03
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6@DarrenRinger also, that could also be interpreted as "usual" Commented Aug 22, 2017 at 22:48
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@DarrenRinger You bring up two points: recurrence and fixed dates. On recurrence, I disagree. While there may be ambiguity of definition (small / regular / large vs regular / irregular), once we're talking about "regular intervals" we're talking about something that recurs - otherwise, it would be a 'one-off' or 'ad hoc' service, not a 'regular' service. Fixed dates each month, however, does come within the semantic range of "regular intervals", as does last day of each month (which isn't the same number each month) - that ambiguity exists, but it isn't one the OP asked about.– LawrenceCommented Aug 22, 2017 at 22:53
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2@Lawrence I'd have to disagree with the answer here. The asker has given context where he has included this sentence: "A customer can book a one-time service or choose an interval.". In your case he'd have to write something like "A customer can book a one-time service or choose a regular service/interval" which seems ambiguous. Remember that it's not just you who needs to understand this sentence unambiguously. Recurring just fits this sentence the best. (Also, a regular interval service would not indicate a recurring one. A recurring service is automatically billed.) Commented Aug 23, 2017 at 5:33
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1"Regular" Is often misused to mean "frequent". For example, UK law requires children to attend school regularly, but the courts would not be amused if you claimed than one day per year on the same day every year was regular, even though it plainly is. Commented Aug 23, 2017 at 19:56
As others have mentioned, the usual expression is Recurring service
recurring
adjective UK /rɪˈkɜː.rɪŋ/ US /rɪˈkɝː.ɪŋ/
happening many times, or happening again
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/recurring
A "Subscription" is what I would go with. Especially if it's a service you are paying for, i.e... subscribing to.
In gardening, when you sow a crop at regular intervals (e.g. I sow lettuce every 2 weeks) it is called successive sowing.
There's nothing wrong with using weekly, monthly, daily or using once a [week/month/day].
For example using:
- To get booked into a daily service.
- We provide daily services.
- Services provided daily.
Or:
- To get booked into a service once a week.
- We provide services once a week.
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3This doesn't answer the question. The question is: "What's the generic word for weekly/monthly etc. service?"– AndyTCommented Aug 23, 2017 at 9:04
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2@AndyT - Neither are any of the other answers. They're all just adjectives that modify the word service. Therefore, "There's nothing wrong with using..." is the answer– MazuraCommented Aug 25, 2017 at 0:36
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1@Mazura - I disagree with your "Neither are any of the other answers": "Regular", "Periodic" or "Recurring" are all words that generically cover the "weekly/monthly" part.– AndyTCommented Aug 25, 2017 at 11:08
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Hello, Maclek. It's good to add supporting evidence, but it's essential to attribute and link so as to avoid breach of copyright. Commented Aug 25, 2017 at 10:35
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I think you should pay attention to your context more than anything else. Luckily for you, there is Amazon.com, to copy. They use "Subscribe and save" for recurring orders. I think it is simple and effective.
