excursion

[ik-skur-zhuh n, -shuh n]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR excursion ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a short trip or outing to some place, usually for a special purpose and with the intention of a prompt return: a pleasure excursion; a scientific excursion.

a trip on a train, ship, etc., at a reduced rate: weekend excursions to mountain resorts.

the group of persons making such a journey: an excursion of tourists.

a deviation or digression: excursions into futile philosophizing.

Physics. the displacement of a body or a point from a mean position or neutral value, as in an oscillation.

an accidental increase in the power level of a reactor, usually forcing its emergency shutdown.

Machinery.

the range of stroke of any moving part.
the stroke itself.

Obsolete. a sally or raid.

verb (used without object)

to go on or take an excursion.

adjective

of, relating to, or intended for use on excursions: an excursion fare; an excursion bus.

Origin of excursion

First recorded in 1565–75, excursion is from the Latin word excursiōn- (stem of excursiō). See excursus, -ion

Related formsex·cur·sion·al, ex·cur·sion·ar·y, adjectivepre·ex·cur·sion, noun

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

Related Words for excursion

trek, picnic, expedition, outing, junket, tour, jaunt, safari, cruise, trip, digression, wandering, ramble, circuit, walk

Examples from the Web for excursion

Contemporary Examples of excursion

I learned a lot about myself on that excursion, and from the trip as a whole.
Iceland Is Beautiful. And Sooo Weird.
Kevin Fallon
April 17, 2014
Love, Nate 12 September 2006 Folks, Just returned from a several day excursion with some of the Recon boys from Lejeune.
Marine First Lieutenant Nathan Krissoff’s Last Letters Home From Iraq
Matt Pottinger
May 26, 2013
"It would be an excursion into dark reality," he told the Los Angeles Times.
Tom Cruise’s ‘Jack Reacher’ & More Ill-Timed Movies (VIDEO)
Marlow Stern
December 18, 2012
His tirade against Zionism was relatively brief; his excursion into 9/11 Trutherism, elliptical.
Modern Israel, Medieval A'Jad
David Frum
September 28, 2012
A basilisk, a sword, and a phoenix mean only one thing for Harry Potter: an excursion into the mysterious chamber.
15 Key Moments From the Harry Potter Movies
Alex Berg
July 14, 2011

Historical Examples of excursion

To his jealous eyes came a vision of that excursion to the hospital.
K
Mary Roberts Rinehart
Heaven rest his soul, and grant that he may not have completed The Excursion!
P.'s Correspondence (From "Mosses From An Old Manse")
Nathaniel Hawthorne
We could not have a more favourable day for our excursion into this world of the dead.
It Happened in Egypt
C. N. Williamson
Inquiring for her, he seemed sorry to hear that she had gone on the excursion.
It Happened in Egypt
C. N. Williamson
It seemed to him monstrous that one should sadden one's life by such an excursion as this.
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola

British Dictionary definitions for excursion

excursion

noun

a short outward and return journey, esp for relaxation, sightseeing, etc; outing

a group of people going on such a journey

(modifier) of or relating to special reduced rates offered on certain journeys by railan excursion ticket

a digression or deviation; diversionan excursion into politics

(formerly) a raid or attack

physics

a movement from an equilibrium position, as in an oscillation
the magnitude of this displacement

the normal movement of a movable bodily organ or part from its resting position, such as the lateral movement of the lower jaw

machinery the locus of a point on a moving part, esp the deflection of a whirling shaft

Word Origin for excursion

C16: from Latin excursiō an attack, from excurrere to run out, from currere to run

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 excursion

1570s, "a deviation in argument," also "a military sally," from Latin excursionem (nominative excursio) "a running forth, sally, excursion, expedition," noun of action from past participle stem of excurrere "run out, run forth, hasten," from ex- "out" (see ex-) + currere "to run" (see current (adj.)). Sense of "journey" recorded in English by 1660s.