cursor

noun

cur·sor | \ ˈkər-sər

, -ˌsȯr\

Definition of cursor

: a movable item used to mark a position: such as

a : a transparent slide with a line attached to a slide rule

b : a visual cue (such as a flashing vertical line) on a video display that indicates position (as for data entry)

Examples of cursor in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Take Elle Fanning, who last night hit the streets in a campy look that was the perfect pre-cursor to Met Gala 2019. — Christian Allaire, Vogue, "Confused About “Camp”? For Elle Fanning, the Met Gala Theme Is a Cinch," 5 Apr. 2019 The easiest way to use picture-in-picture is to hit the keyboard shortcut super-F, which will change your cursor into a crosshairs. — Scott Gilbertson, Ars Technica, "A tour of elementary OS, perhaps the Linux world’s best hope for the mainstream," 28 Dec. 2018 Moving the cursor across the screen appears smoother, and Windows 10 animations appear just a little more snappy and polished. — Stefan Etienne, The Verge, "MSI Oculux NXG251 monitor review: faster isn’t always better," 29 Nov. 2018 The playable demo isn't necessarily a lot of fun to watch as a direct, start-to-finish affair, since a lot of the video revolves around using mouse cursors to review and pick through cards. — Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica, "Exclusive: Valve walks us through Artifact’s new demo, leaves us wanting more," 31 Aug. 2018 The cursor blinked back at them, pulsing like an explosive light. — Eric Johnson, Recode, "Google’s former PR boss Jessica Powell wrote a satirical novel about tech and published it all on Medium," 2 Oct. 2018 Using a webcam, the system recognizes hand or head motions to move an on-screen cursor. — Matthew Kitchen, WSJ, "The Death of the TV Remote—and What’s Coming Next," 15 June 2018 To do that, hover the cursor over the person’s name in your inbox list. — New York Times, "Finding Your Contacts in the New Gmail," 21 May 2018 The display screens in both the 6.1-inch touch screen and 4.2-inch display in the instrument cluster are pixelated like an 8-bit game in a greenish blue, blinking-cursor type style. — Robert Duffer, chicagotribune.com, "Review: 2017 Toyota Highlander isn't as fresh as the three-row competition," 31 May 2017

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

History and Etymology for cursor

borrowed from Latin cursor "runner, courier," from currere "to run" + -tor, agent suffix — more at current entry 1

Note: For cursor as agent noun of currere in place of expected *co(r)stor see note at course entry 1. As with other Latin deverbal derivatives, the zero grade ablaut of the past participle has been generalized with all suffixes ending in -t-.

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