curr-, cur-, cor-, cour-

Descriptive of an event that can be seen: Lightning and thunderstorms have apparently been more occurrent happenings this year than in previous times.

1. Descriptive of something that comes before or preceding an event: Most civilizations are the result of precursive cultures.
2. Suggestive of more to follow: The president's joke about corn was a precursive introduction to his plea for financial support for improved harvests.

1. A person or something that comes before an action or a situation, as in a job, a method, etc.: Taking advanced computer classes, especially programming, can be a precursor to being qualified for better paying jobs with businesses or individuals.
2. A person, animal, or thing that happens before and indicates the approach of someone or something else; a harbinger or foretelling: The budding of tree leaves is a precursor of spring and so is the sight of certain birds, such as robins.
3. Someone or something that comes before and is often considered to lead to the development of another person or thing: Small tremors can be precursors to earthquakes.

Lightening is almost always the precursor to thunder.

6. An individual who held a position or a job before someone else: Being a skilled writer was Mark's precursor to being a full-time reporter for the local newspaper. © ALL rights are reserved.
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1. Pertaining to an initial or an introductory stage: The mayor made a precursory statement that he was considering the possibility of running for governor of his state.
2. Referring to an indication of something that is to come: The thunder and dark clouds were precursory warnings that heavy rain was on its way.

1. The action or procedure of going to someone or using something for help or safety: Going to his elderly aunt was Terry's last recourse for getting financial support so he could go to the university.
2. Someone who is available for help or safety: The governor will be the final recourse to getting the legislation passed for better roads.
3. The right by law to claim payment from an endorser when the person who is liable can't pay: Janet had a recourse to a lawyer who said he could get her payment refunded.

1. To take place repeatedly: Amy's nightmare recurred for weeks, even though she slept with the light on.
2. To come to one's attention or memory again and again: The sad meeting with Megan kept recurring in Jim's mind for a long time.

An action or situation that is repeated or happens again: After Luke's exposure to poison ivy on the hike in the mountains, he had several recurrences of the itchy rash for several days.

Eugenia had a recurrence of cancer cells in the same place as before.

1. Descriptive of an event or a situation that happens repeatedly or many times: A dance every Friday night was the recurrent social activity of the small town.
2. Taking place or appearing again: Latonya's sister had a recurrent fever which came back after a few days of remission.

Surgery will be necessary to correct Becca's recurrent medical condition.

Relating to an event or situation taking place again: The cattle recurrently trampled through Mr. Weaver's garden because he didn't have a fence to block them.

1. The return of something over and over again: According to Laura's doctor, she had recursions of coughing which he diagnosed was caused by smoking too much.
2. In computer programming, a process of defining a program, a function, a routine, or a procedure in terms of itself: Manfred used a function of recursion from within the same operation to compute a given series of whole numbers.
3. Etymology: from late Latin recursion; literally, "a running back"; from Latin recurs-, the past participle stem of recurrere, "to run back, to run again".

A procedure for determining the next term of a sequence from one or more of the preceding terms: Oliver was trying to compute a group of quantities based on the recursion formula from a set of other groups that existed before.

1. A reference to something that repeats itself, either indefinitely or until a specific point is reached: The recursive "peeping" from Jane's microwave, indicating that the time was up, didn't stop until she opened the door.
2. Pertaining to or using a rule or procedure that can be applied repeatedly: The recursive research and simplifications of definitions and the creations of applicable sentences that extend one's understanding of word entries has been continually frustrating because there is such a lack of available resources in printed and internet lexicons!
3. Capable of being used again, or of being returned to after an interruption: Modern technology has been providing so many recursive devices that one could create a very long list of them and still not include all of the marvelous instruments that are available for people to utilize!

In computer programming, the program instruction set that contains a repetition of steps in a process as a direct consequence of the actions that precede each one: As a programmer for computers, Eric uses recursive algorithms in the development of data processes that achieve a desired objective or result.

Characterized by running, or stepping, backward: Bryan's cousin had a strange mental condition in that he was always making more retrocursive movements than the normal forward walking or running actions.

The assistance or relief that is given to someone during a period of need, distress, or difficulty: In the parable of the Good Samaritan, the victim of a robbery is given succor by a stranger.

The Golden Rule in the Bible says, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." This is a command of succor based on Jesus' words in the Sermon on the Mount.

Additional translations of succor are: "Whatever you wish that people would do for you, do the same for them."

Two additional sources of succors are in the following biblical books:

• Matthew 7:12, "So whatever you wish that men should do to you, do so to them."
• Luke 6:31, "And as you wish that men would do to you, do so to them."

© ALL rights are reserved.
© ALL rights are reserved.

Go to this Word A Day Revisited Index
so you can see more of Mickey Bach's cartoons.