courser

[ kawr-ser, kohr- ]

/ ˈkɔr sər, ˈkoʊr- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR courser ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person or thing that courses.

a dog for coursing.

RELATED WORDS

hound, chaser, foxhound

Nearby words

Origin of courser

First recorded in 1585–95; course + -er¹

courser

[ kawr-ser, kohr- ]

/ ˈkɔr sər, ˈkoʊr- /

noun Literary.

a swift horse.

Origin of courser

1250–1300; Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French coursier < Vulgar Latin *cursārius, equivalent to Latin curs(us) course + -ārius -ary; see -er²

courser

[ kawr-ser, kohr- ]

/ ˈkɔr sər, ˈkoʊr- /

noun

any of several swift-footed, ploverlike birds of the genera Cursorius and Pluvianus, chiefly of the desert regions of Asia and Africa.

Origin of courser

1760–70; irregular < New Latin cursōrius fitted for running, equivalent to Latin cur(rere) to run + -sōrius, for -tōrius -tory¹; cf. course

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for courser

Here he stayed his courser, and sprang to the ground, peering beneath its boughs.
The Fairies and the Christmas Child|Lilian Gask
The lad he upsprang on his courser so high, He galloped as fast as the wingèd birds fly.
The Verner Raven; The Count of Vendel's Daughter|Anonymous
He therefore alighted from his courser, and the Jinnee said to him, “Drink of this spring.”
Folk-Lore and Legends: Oriental|Charles John Tibbitts
And he attentively examined, with his infallible eye, the shape and capabilities of the courser.
The Vicomte de Bragelonne|Alexandre Dumas

The jackal lapped the courser's blood, and moaned with exquisite delight.
Alroy|Benjamin Disraeli

British Dictionary definitions for courser

courser

/ (ˈkɔːsə) /

noun

a person who courses hounds or dogs, esp greyhounds

a hound or dog trained for coursing

noun

literary a swift horse; steed

Word Origin for courser

C13: from Old French coursier, from cours course

noun

a terrestrial plover-like shore bird, such as Cursorius cursor (cream-coloured courser), of the subfamily Cursoriinae of desert and semidesert regions of the Old World: family Glareolidae, order Charadriiformes

Word Origin for courser

C18: from Latin cursōrius suited for running, from cursus course

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for courser

courser

large, powerful horse," c.1300, from Old French corsier "fast horse, charger," literally "fast-running," from Vulgar Latin *cursarius, from Latin cursus (see course (n.)).