course

noun \ ˈkȯrs \

|Updated on: 12 Jun 2018

1 : the act or action of moving in a path from point to point

the planets in their courses

2 : the path over which something moves or extends: such as

a : racecourse

b (1) : the direction of travel of a vehicle (such as a ship or airplane) usually measured as a clockwise angle from north; also : the projected path of travel

(2) : a point of the compass

c : watercourse

d : golf course

3 a : accustomed procedure or normal action

the law taking its course

b : a chosen manner of conducting oneself : way of acting

Our wisest course is to retreat.

c (1) : progression through a development or period or a series of acts or events

the course of history

(2) : life history, career

4 : an ordered process or succession: such as

a : a number of lectures or other matter dealing with a subject

took a course in zoology

; also : a series of such courses constituting a curriculum

a premed course

b : a series of doses or medications administered over a designated period

5 a : a part of a meal served at one time

the main course

b : layer; especially : a continuous level range of brick or masonry throughout a wall

c : the lowest sail on a square-rigged mast

— in due course

: after a normal passage of time : in the expected or allotted time

His discoveries led in due course to new forms of treatment.

— of course

1 : following the ordinary way or procedure

will be done as a matter of course

2 : as might be expected

Of course we will go.

See course defined for English-language learners

See course defined for kids

Examples of course in a Sentence

the course of a river
The pilot brought the plane back on course.
The ship was blown off course by a storm.
She's taking a chemistry course this semester.
Students earn the degree after a two-year course of study.
There is no cure, but the treatment will slow the course of the disease.

Recent Examples of course from the Web

As a result, the Old Lady will break even, given that the extra €31m is essentially 'set aside' for Pipita over the course of his current deal.

— SI.com, "Juventus Slap €63m Price Tag On Gonzalo Higuain's Head Amid Interest From Chelsea & Inter," 8 June 2018
Over the course of the next six years, the company performed rotating repertory.

— christopher wallenberg, BostonGlobe.com, "David Morse’s Boston years set the stage for Tony recognition," 8 June 2018
The movie tries to convince us, in other words, that Rogers—who wrote, produced, and starred in every episode of Mister Rogers, in addition to writing more than 200 songs for the show over the course of its three-decade run—was an artist.

— k. austin collins, HWD, "Won’t You Be My Neighbor?," 8 June 2018
Over the course of approximately a million service calls in 2017, Ewell said, the department used that drone six times.

— geoff manaugh, The Atlantic, "Drone Cops Take Flight in Los Angeles," 8 June 2018
Over the course of a year, one facility can use as much water as 100,000 people.

— matt simon, WIRED, "Wanna Pull Water Out of Air? Grab Some Ions or a Weird Sponge," 8 June 2018
Is each of us one person or, over the course of a lifetime, many?

— The New Yorker, "Tracy Letts’s Existential Riddle," 8 June 2018
Video messages from Julia Roberts and Barack Obama were also included over the course of the two-hour long ceremony.

— sonaiya kelley, latimes.com, "George Clooney evokes Edward R. Murrow while receiving AFI's Life Achievement Award," 8 June 2018
The Cook County Class 6b program was designed to reduce the overall property tax bill for industrial and warehouse buildings over the course of 12 years, according to the report.

— alexandra kukulka, chicagotribune.com, "Glenview approves tax break for Abt Electronics expansion," 7 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'course.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of course

Middle English, from Anglo-French curs, course, from Latin cursus, from currere to run — more at car

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

course Synonyms

Synonyms

operation, procedure, proceeding, process;

Related Words

drill, routine;

fashion, form, manner, method, mode, style, system, technique, way;

approach, arrangement, blueprint, design, formula, game plan, ground plan, layout, plan, plot, program, project, recipe, scheme, strategy;

course

verb

coursed; coursing

transitive verb

1 : to follow close upon : pursue

2 a : to hunt or pursue (game) with hounds

b : to cause (dogs) to run (as after game)

3 : to run or move swiftly through or over : traverse

Jets coursed the area daily.

intransitive verb

: to run or pass rapidly along or as if along an indicated path

blood coursing through the veins

See course defined for English-language learners

Examples of course in a Sentence

the blood coursing through my veins
Tears were coursing down his cheeks.

Recent Examples of course from the Web

So, the riders make this 19-hour journey, past farmland dotted with grazing cows, the Susquehanna River rapids coursing around an eccentric replica Statue of Liberty, the monotony of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

— samantha melamed, Philly.com, "Can the rural prison economy survive the era of decarceration?," 7 June 2018
The project was sparked by an air of spontaneity that coursed through the guitarist following a weeklong solo residency at the Stone—the New York not-for-profit avant-garde and experimental space programmed by John Zorn.

— peter margasak, Chicago Reader, "Shape-shifting guitarist Bill Frisell beautifully sums up his meditative range on Music Is," 31 May 2018
In many ways, al-Sadr's surprising political climb mirrors that of Trump and other nationalist figures in Europe, Asia and the Arab world who have tapped into the populist impulses coursing through world politics.

— josh lederman, Fox News, "After upset Iraqi vote, US prepares to embrace a former foe," 17 May 2018
Eavesdropping on impulses coursing through the 80,000 to 100,000 fibers in the vagus nerve is challenging, however, partly because the nerve is insulated by a sheath of connective tissue.

— tim hornyak, Scientific American, "Could Future Nerve Implants Detect and Monitor Illness?," 10 May 2018
Families should take into consideration which courses require additional study time and which do not.

— diana lambert, sacbee, "Tests got you stressed? Try 'primal screaming' | The Sacramento Bee," 21 May 2018
The 20th annual Kinetic Sculpture Race coursed through Baltimore on Saturday.

— john-john williams iv, baltimoresun.com, "Kinetic Sculpture Race enlivens Baltimore for 20th year," 5 May 2018
In this environment, the cells not only developed a three-dimensional pattern of different brain cells, but the tissue was permeated by blood vessels, which coursed with blood.

— bradley j. fikes, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Salk researchers build better mini-brains to study neurological diseases," 25 Apr. 2018
Nearly 8,000 gallons an hour coursed through the spaghetti- like tubing, into the massive sterile holding tanks, and then into the reverse osmosis machinery that begins to remove the water.

— stephanie hanes, The Christian Science Monitor, "Maple syrup inc.: Vermont’s maple syrup tradition goes high tech, high finance," 18 Apr. 2018

Origin and Etymology of course

see ¹course

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

course Synonyms

Phrases

beat it, get a move on, make tracks, shake a leg, step on it;

COURSE Defined for English Language Learners

course

noun

: the path or direction that something or someone moves along
: a path or route that runners, skiers, bikers, etc., move along especially in a race
: a series of classes about a particular subject in a school

course

verb

: to move or flow quickly

COURSE Defined for Kids

course

noun \ ˈkȯrs \

1 : motion from one point to another : progress in space or time

The earth makes its course around the sun in 365 days.

During the course of a year he meets dozens of people.

2 : the path over which something moves

The ship was blown off course.

3 : a natural channel for water

A trail follows the river's course.

4 : a way of doing something

Choose a course of action.

5 : the ordinary way something happens over time

the course of business

6 : a series of acts or proceedings arranged in regular order

a course of therapies

7 : a series of classes in a subject

a geography course

8 : a part of a meal served separately

We ate a three course dinner.

— of course

: as might be expected

You know, of course, that I like you.

Word Root of course

The Latin word currere, meaning “to run,” and its form cursus give us the roots curr and curs. Words from the Latin currere have something to do with running. A current is the direction in which a river runs or flows. When two people concur, their ideas or opinions run together in agreement. A course is the path over which something moves or runs.