recur

Everyday

1. To recur means to happen again, often more than once. tree →
2. (maths) A recurring decimal is a decimal in which a digit or group of digits repeats for ever, like 0.333… tree →
3. To recur means to come back into your mind again, like a thought or a dream. tree →

In the lessons

In maths it is used for decimals that never end: one third is 0.3 recurring. In health and safety it describes illnesses or problems that come back («a recurring headache»). In stories a recurring character or dream shows up again and again. Phrases: «recurring decimal», «0.6 recurring», «a recurring dream», «if the problem recurs».

Examples

• One third written as a decimal is 0.3 recurring. tree →
• If the pain recurs, go back to the doctor. tree →
• The same mistake recurred in every one of his sums. tree →
• She had a recurring dream about flying over the sea. tree →
• Floods recur in that valley almost every spring. tree →
• Two thirds is 0.6 recurring, which we round to 0.67. tree →
• The idea kept recurring to him all through the lesson. tree →
• The villain is a recurring character in the cartoon. tree →
• Parallels.--The well-known story of the Pied Piper of Hameln (Hamelin), immortalised by Browning, will at once recur to every reader's mind. tree →

Note

Double the r before -ed and -ing: recurred, recurring. Noun: recurrence. In maths, «recurring» (UK) = «repeating» (USA); a dot or bar over the digit shows it repeats. A recurring decimal never stops, so any written answer is rounded. Do not confuse with «occur» (happen once) — recur means happen again.