excursion

ex·cur·sion

noun \ik-ˈskər-zhən\

: a short trip especially for pleasure

Full Definition of EXCURSION

1

a :  a going out or forth :  expedition

b (1) :  a usually brief pleasure trip (2) :  a trip at special reduced rates

2

:  deviation from a direct, definite, or proper course; especially :  digression <needless excursions into abstruse theory>

3

:  a movement outward and back or from a mean position or axis; also :  the distance traversed :  amplitude <the excursion of a piston>

Examples of EXCURSION

1. They went on a brief excursion to the coast.
2. <our weekend excursions have encompassed virtually all parts of our home state>

Origin of EXCURSION

Latin excursion-, excursio, from excurrere

First Known Use: circa 1587

Related to EXCURSION

Synonyms

jaunt, junket, outing, ramble, sally, sashay, sortie, spin

Related Words

journey, travel(s), voyage; circuit, tour; expedition, odyssey, safari; detour; hike, peregrination, trek, walk; pilgrimage

Rhymes with EXCURSION

aspersion, aversion, coercion, conversion, dispersion, diversion, emersion, eversion, immersion, incursion, inversion, perversion, recursion, reversion, submersion, subversion

ex·cur·sion

noun \ik-ˈskər-zhən\   (Medical Dictionary)

Medical Definition of EXCURSION

1

a : a movement outward and back or from a mean position or axis <excursion of the femur> b : the distance traversed

2

: one complete movement of expansion and contraction of the lungs and their membranes (as in breathing)