-or; -our (primarily British)

(Latin: a suffix; state of, result of; he who, that which)

A suffix that forms nouns. British spelling is usually -our.
survivor
1. Someone who outlives another person or other people.
2. Anyone who lives through afflictions or dangers.
3. Someone who remains alive despite being exposed to a life-threatening danger.
4. A person with great powers of endurance; such as, somebody who shows a great will to live or a great determination to overcome difficulties and to carry on.
5. In law, the one of two or more people having joint interests in property who lives longer than the other, or others, and is, therefore, entitled to the entire property.
teleceptor (s) (noun), teleceptors (pl)
A sensory nerve terminal which is sensitive to stimuli originating at a distance; such nerve endings exist in the eyes, ears, and nose.
tenor
tensor
1. Any muscle that stretches, or tenses, some part of the body.
2. In mathematics, an abstract object representing a generalization of the vector concept and having a specified system of components that undergo certain types of transformation under changes of the coordinate system.
terror (s) (noun), terrors (pl)
Great fear, alarm; intense, over whelming fear; informal, one who is annoying or difficult to manage, especially a child.
testator
Someone, especially a man, who has made a legally valid will.
tolerator
torpor (s) (noun)
1. A condition of not being active and having very little energy: "The news about the earthquake aroused him from his torpor and as a result, he became more aware of what was happening."
2. A state of mental or physical inactivity or insensibility: "Mike was experiencing significant torpor after working for two days without any sleep."
3. A situation in which an organism is inactive and it might be a result of damage to the nervous system or it might be a natural reaction to conserve energy: "Some mosquitoes pass the winter in a state of torpor so they can survive freezing temperatures."
tractor
traitor (s) (noun), traitors (pl)
1. Someone who betrays a trust or who acts as a collaborationist for a treasonous cause: The traitor plead guilty to treason in exchange for banishment from his country.
2. Etymology: from Old French tradicion; from Latin traditionem, "delivery, surrender, a handing down"; from traditus, past participle of tradere, "to deliver, to hand over"; from trans-, "over" + dare, "to give".
translator (s) (noun), translators (pl)
tumor (s) (noun), tumors (pl)
An abnormal mass of tissue: "Tumors are a classic sign of inflammation, and can be benign or malignant (cancerous)."

There are dozens of different types of tumors. Their names usually reflect the kind of tissue they arise in, and may also tell us something about their shapes or how they grow; for example, a medulloblastoma is a tumor that arises from embryonic cells (a blastoma) in the inner part of the brain (the medulla)."

"Diagnosis depends on the type and location of the tumor."

"Tumor marker tests and tumor imaging may be used to diagnose patients and some tumors can be seen on the exterior of the skin or felt with the fingers or hands."

varistor (s) (noun), varistors (pl)
In electricity, a variable resistor.

A two-electrode resistor made of semiconductor material and having voltage-dependent nonlinear resistance which drops with an increase in applied voltage; can be used to protect sensitive equipment from power spikes or lightning strikes by shunting the energy to the ground.

vigor (s) (noun), vigors (pl)
An active strength of body and mind; mental energy, enthusiasm, and determination: Since his first novel was so successful, Monroe started his new novel with even more vigor and eagerness than he did before.

Frank defended his objectives for the modifications of the construction project with vigor and forcefulness.

Being active with mental or physical strength, vitality, and energy.
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Go to this Word A Day Revisited Index
so you can see more of Mickey Bach's cartoons.

visitor
1. Someone who visits a person or place; for example, a caller, a guest, a tourist, etc.
2. An online website viewer or an internet user who views a website.
3. Someone who is authorized to visit a corporation or any institution, for the purpose of seeing that the laws and regulations are observed, or that the duties and conditions prescribed by the founder or by law, are duly performed and executed.
4. Anyone who goes to see or to spend time somewhere for reasons of friendship, business, duty, travel, etc.
5. An out-of-town team that travels to an opponent's stadium or sports field to play a game.