recourse

American  

[ree-kawrs, -kohrs, ri-kawrs, -kohrs] / ˈri kɔrs, -koʊrs, rɪˈkɔrs, -ˈkoʊrs /

noun

1. access or resort to a person or thing for help or protection.

   to have recourse to the courts for justice.

2. a person or thing resorted to for help or protection.

3. the right to collect from a maker or endorser of a negotiable instrument. The endorser may add the words “without recourse” on the instrument, thereby transferring the instrument without assuming any liability.

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recourse British  

/ rɪˈkɔːs /

noun

1. the act of resorting to a person, course of action, etc, in difficulty or danger (esp in the phrase have recourse to )

2. a person, organization, or course of action that is turned to for help, protection, etc

3. the right to demand payment, esp from the drawer or endorser of a bill of exchange or other negotiable instrument when the person accepting it fails to pay

4. a qualified endorsement on such a negotiable instrument, by which the endorser protects himself or herself from liability to subsequent holders

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Etymology

Origin of recourse

1350–1400; Middle English recours < Old French < Late Latin recursus, Latin: return, retreat, noun use of past participle of recurrere to run back; recur

Example Sentences

There is fear of bombardments, but "there is no other recourse -- people don't have money to eat. Life has become impossible", she said.

From Barron's • Mar. 27, 2026

But if they do gain access to your biometric data, by hacking a site where it’s stored, for example, you have no recourse.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026

Of course nominees and winners have opinions about politics, science, social issues, international conflict and those suffering without recourse or voice — that’s why they make movies.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 13, 2026

And it argued that even as Costco, along with scores of other businesses, seeks tariff-related refunds for themselves in court, the consumers who ultimately shouldered those higher prices had no clear recourse.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 12, 2026

‘The treatment of natural things differs greatly from that of other sciences...In the explanation of natural causes, we must necessarily have recourse to a different kind of principle, called “hypothesis” or “supposition”.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Related Words

• remedy