a. Incurable. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Not recurring. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Nonrecurrent; as, the costs of a layoff are considered as a nonrecurring expense. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A precursor. [ Obs. ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. praecursus. ] A forerunning. [ Obs. ] Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Preceding; introductory; precursory. “A deep precursive sound.” Coleridge. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. praecursor, fr. praecurrere to run before; prae before + currere to run. See Course. ] One who, or that which, precedes an event, and indicates its approach; a forerunner; a harbinger. [ 1913 Webster ]

Evil thoughts are the invisible, airy precursors of all the storms and tempests of the soul. Buckminster. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Predecessor; forerunner; harbinger; messenger; omen; sign. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The position or condition of a precursor. Ruskin. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. praecursorius. ] Preceding as a precursor or harbinger; indicating something to follow; as, precursory symptoms of a fever. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. An introduction. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Recurred p. pr. & vb. n. Recurring. ] [ L. recurrere; pref. re- re- + currere to run. See Current. ] 1. To come back; to return again or repeatedly; to come again to mind. [ 1913 Webster ]

When any word has been used to signify an idea, the old idea will recur in the mind when the word is heard. I. Watts. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To occur at a stated interval, or according to some regular rule; as, the fever will recur to-night. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To resort; to have recourse; to go for help. [ 1913 Webster ]

If, to avoid succession in eternal existence, they recur to the “punctum stans” of the schools, they will thereby very little help us to a more positive idea of infinite duration. Locke. [ 1913 Webster ]

Recurring decimal (Math.), a circulating decimal. See under Decimal. --
Recurring series (Math.), an algebraic series in which the coefficients of the several terms can be expressed by means of certain preceding coefficients and constants in one uniform manner. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ Cf. Recover. ] 1. To arrive at; to reach; to attain. [ Obs. ] Lydgate. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To recover; to regain; to repossess. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

When their powers, impaired through labor long,
With due repast, they had recured well. Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To restore, as from weariness, sickness; or the like; to repair. [ 1913 Webster ]

In western waves his weary wagon did recure. Spenser. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To be a cure for; to remedy. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

No medicine
Might avail his sickness to recure. Lydgate. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Cure; remedy; recovery. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

But whom he hite, without recure he dies. Fairfax. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Incapable of cure. [ Obs. ] Bp. Hall. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. [ Cf. F. récurrence. ] The act of recurring, or state of being recurrent; return; resort; recourse. [ 1913 Webster ]

I shall insensibly go on from a rare to a frequent recurrence to the dangerous preparations. I. Taylor. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. recurrens, -entis, p. pr. of recurrere: cf.F. récurrent. See Recur. ] 1. Returning from time to time; recurring; as, recurrent pains. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Anat.) Running back toward its origin; as, a recurrent nerve or artery. [ 1913 Webster ]

Recurrent fever. (Med.) See Relapsing fever, under Relapsing. --
Recurrent pulse (Physiol.), the pulse beat which appears (when the radial artery is compressed at the wrist) on the distal side of the point of pressure through the arteries of the palm of the hand. --
Recurrent sensibility (Physiol.), the sensibility manifested by the anterior, or motor, roots of the spinal cord (their stimulation causing pain) owing to the presence of sensory fibers from the corresponding sensory or posterior roots. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. recursans, -antis, p. pr. of recursare to run back, v. freq. of recurrere. See Recure. ] (Her.) Displayed with the back toward the spectator; -- said especially of an eagle. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. recursio. See Recur. ] The act of recurring; return. [ Obs. ] Boyle. [ 1913 Webster ]

[ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. recurvatus, p. p. of recurvare. See Re-, and Curvate. ] (Bot.) Recurved. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To bend or curve back; to recurve. Pennant. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The act of recurving, or the state of being recurved; a bending or flexure backward. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To curve in an opposite or unusual direction; to bend back or down. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Curved in an opposite or uncommon direction; bent back; as, a bird with a recurved bill; flowers with recurved petals. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ L. recurvus bent back + rostrum beack; cf. F. récurvirostre. ] (Zool.) A bird whose beak bends upward, as the avocet. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ See Recurviroster. ] (Zool.) Having the beak bent upwards. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Recurvation. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. recurvus; pref. re- re + curvus curved. ] Recurved. Derham. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Incurable. [ Obs. ] “Some unrecuring wound.” Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

See accommodating.
See aching.
See ailing.
See aiming.
See alarming.
See altering.
See appreciating.
See approving.
See aspiring.
See assisting.
See attempting.
See attending.
See bearing.
See befitting.
See beginning.
See believing.
See bleaching.
See bleeding.
See blemishing.
See blenching.
See blossoming.
See blushing.
See boding.
See branching.
See breathing.
See burning.
See calculating.
See ceasing.
See changing.
See charming.
See communicating.
See complaining.
See complying.
See conceiving.
See conducing.
See confessing.
See conniving.
See consenting.
See considering.
See conspiring.
See consulting.
See consuming.
See contending.
See contriving.
See conversing.
See convincing.
See dawning.
See decaying.
See delaying.
See depending.
See derogating.
See deserving.
See desiring.
See despairing.
See detesting.
See deviating.
See differencing.
See discerning.
See discording.
See discriminating.
See disobliging.
See dispensing.
See dissembling.
See dissolving.
See distinguishing.
See distracting.
See disturbing.
See doubting.
See dreading.
See drooping.
See ebbing.
See echoing.
See edifying.
See ending.
See enduring.
See engaging.
See enjoying.
See entering.
See enterprising.
See entertaining.
See envying.
See existing.
See fadging.
See fading.
See fainting.
See faltering.
See fearing.
See feigning.
See fighting.
See fitting.
See flagging.
See flattering.
See flinching.
See folding.
See forbearing.
See foreboding.
See foreseeing.
See forgiving.
See giving.
See grudging.
See harming.
See heeding.
See hesitating.
See hoping.
See hurting.
See importing.
See imposing.
See improving.
See interesting.
See intermitting.
See intoxicating.
See inviting.
See jarring.
See laboring.
See lingering.
See listening.
See loving.
See meddling.
See meriting.
See mistrusting.
See moving.
See murmuring.
See obliging.
See observing.
See offending.
See opening.
See pardoning.
See paying.
See perceiving.
See performing.
See perishing.
See pitying.
See pleasing.
See possessing.
See preaching.
See prepossessing.
See presuming.
See pretending.
See prevailing.
See prevaricating.
See profiting.
See promising.
See proving.
See quailing.
See questioning.
See reasoning.
See recalling.
See reclining.
See recurring.
See referring.
See reflecting.
See refunding.
See refusing.
See rejoicing.
See relaxing.
See relishing.
See remembering.
See repenting.
See repining.
See reproving.
See repulsing.
See resisting.
See resolving.
See resting.
See returning.
See rewarding.
See sanctifying.
See satisfying.
See searching.
See seeing.
See setting.
See shrinking.
See sinking.
See sleeping.
See slipping.
See slumbering.
See speaking.
See stinting.
See stirring.
See stooping.
See submitting.
See sufficing.
See suiting.
See surging.
See suspecting.
See sweating.
See swerving.
See sympathizing.
See tasting.
See thriving.
See tiring.
See toiling.
See trading.
See trembling.
See trespassing.
See trifling.
See vacillating.
See varying.
See walking.
See wandering.
See waning.
See wasting.
See wavering.
See weeping.
See winking.
See winning.
See withdrawing.
See withering.
See wondering.
See working.
See writing.
See yielding.
----- and the like. [ 1913 Webster ]

The above classes of words are unlimited in extent, and such compounds may be formed by any writer or speaker at will from almost all the adjectives or participles in the language, excepting those which have a recognized and usual negative correspondent with the prefix -in. No attempt will be made, therefore, to define them all in this Dictionary; many will be omitted from its Vocabulary which are negations of the simple word, and are readily explained by prefixing a not to the latter. Derivatives of these words in -ly and -ness will also, for the most part, be omitted for the same or similar reasons. [ 1913 Webster ]

There will be inserted as separate articles with definitions, the following: -- [ 1913 Webster ]

1. Those which have acquired an opposed or contrary, instead of a merely negative, meaning; as, unfriendly, ungraceful, unpalatable, unquiet, and the like; or else an intensive sense more than a prefixed not would express; as, unending, unparalleled, undisciplined, undoubted, unsafe, and the like. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Those which have the value of independent words, inasmuch as the simple words are either not used at all, or are rarely, or at least much less frequently, used; as, unavoidable, unconscionable, undeniable, unspeakable, unprecedented, unruly, and the like; or inasmuch as they are used in a different sense from the usual meaning of the primitive, or especially in one of the significations of the latter; as, unaccountable, unalloyed, unbelieving, unpretending, unreserved, and the like; or inasmuch as they are so frequently and familiarly used that they are hardly felt to be of negative origin; as, uncertain, uneven, and the like. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Those which are anomalous, provincial, or, for some other reason, not desirable to be used, and are so indicated; as, unpure for impure, unsatisfaction for dissatisfaction, unexpressible for inexpressible, and the like. [ 1913 Webster ]

II. Un- is prefixed to nouns to express the absence of, or the contrary of, that which the noun signifies; as, unbelief, unfaith, unhealth, unrest, untruth, and the like. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ Compounds of this last class are given in full in their proper order in the Vocabulary. [ 1913 Webster ]