Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of recurrence
Explanation
If something is happening yet again, there's a recurrence of it. Most sports fans hope there isn't a recurrence of last year's losing season. If you keep getting a hacking cough, then you're having a recurrence — that cough just keeps coming back. The word recurrence has to do with things that repeat or return, often at predictable times. If your dog barks at the same time every day, your neighbors might complain about the recurrence of noise. A note on using this word: reoccurrence means basically the same thing, but recurrence is considered a more stylish choice.
Vocabulary lists containing recurrence
"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" by Ambrose Bierce
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"Rip Van Winkle" by Washington Irving
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Vocabulary from Woodrow Wilson's "Fourteen Points" (1918)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Previous studies have indicated that cancer cells surviving chemotherapy may help drive recurrence by releasing a complicated mixture of signaling molecules.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026
“That does not mean we are cured. We are still in jeopardy of recurrence and require careful continuity of care monitoring by our out-of-state specialist.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2026
A key reason the therapy has not been rolled out more widely to date is concern about long-term survival and whether treating only part of the prostate might lead to higher recurrence.
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
Cells that survive after gaining extra DNA may continue multiplying and potentially contribute to tumor recurrence.
From Science Daily ● May 25, 2026
But the vote for the third election happened during the 1797 recurrence of yellow fever, when most well-to-do citizens had left the city.
From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy
“We will significantly enhance our information security to prevent recurrences and will do everything we can do to recover trust,” it said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 16, 2025
The scientists showed how the immune cells could eliminate a deadly brain tumor called glioblastoma and prevent recurrences.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 5, 2024
Abalkina refers to the company’s inability to prevent such recurrences as “whack-a-mole.”
From Science Magazine ● Dec. 5, 2023
Its emotional match may be Evangelista's determination to reclaim her career after surviving a financially devastating divorce, recurrences of cancer and permanent disfigurement related to a cosmetic procedure.
From Salon ● Sep. 20, 2023
Multiple recurrences of the disease kept his heart weak and his health precarious.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
