recurrent
adjective
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Recurrent vs. Recurring
Is there a difference between recurring and recurrent? As is so often the case with nearly identical words, the answer is "yes and no." Both words are most commonly used in the sense "happening time after time." But recurrent, the more commonly-used of the two, tends to appear more often in medical contexts, as in “recurrent fevers” or “recurrent cancer.” It also has a specialized anatomical sense, "running or turning back in a direction opposite to a former course,” as in “a recurrent artery,” that recurring does not share. There are certainly circumstances in which either recurrent or recurring could be used; pain or needs might be described as either recurrent or recurring. But even in such cases, there may be subtle differences which you may wish to pay attention to. Recurrent tends to suggest a coming back of something that has existed before, whereas recurring often implies simply a repeated occurrence.
Synonyms
Examples of recurrent in a Sentence
Lauren Leffer, Scientific American, 3 July 2024
Thick lotions or tight, non-breathable clothing can cause recurrent heat rash anywhere that sweat repeatedly gets trapped under the skin's surface.
—Christopher Bergland, Verywell Health, 1 July 2024
That’s a recurrent phenomenon on the peninsula, with 800 years of pause or quiescence, followed by 100 or 200 years of intense eruptions, followed by another quiet period.
—Jacopo Prisco, CNN, 28 June 2024
Particularly, the scarcity of Black female cast members has been a recurrent talking point surrounding the program, which only in recent years began to push for more diverse talent behind and in front of the camera.
—Jessica Wang, EW.com, 18 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for recurrent 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'recurrent.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near recurrent
Cite this Entry
“Recurrent.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/recurrent. Accessed 15 Jul. 2024.
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recurrent
adjective
Medical Definition
recurrent
adjective
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