excursion

A brief recreational trip; a journey out of the usual way.

Noun

  1. A brief recreational trip; a journey out of the usual way.
    • While driving home I took an excursion and saw some deer.
    • Mother[…]considered that the exclusiveness of Peter's circle was due not to its distinction, but to the fact that it was an inner Babylon of prodigality and whoredom, from which every Kensingtonian held aloof, except on...
  2. A field trip.
  3. A wandering from the main subject: a digression.
    • Now all his ponderings, however excursive, wheeled round Isabel as their center; and back to her they came again from every excursion; and again derived some new, small germs for wonderment. - 1852, Herman Melville,...
  4. An occurrence where an aircraft runs off the end or side of a runway or taxiway, usually during takeoff, landing, or taxi.
  5. A deviation in pitch, for example in the syllables of enthusiastic speech.
  6. Temporary deviation from a regular course or pattern
    • After an unsuccessful excursion into banking, I've returned to public life.

Origin

Borrowed from Latin excursiō (“a running out, an inroad, invasion, a setting out, beginning of a speech”), from excurrere (“to run out”), from ex (“out”) + currere (“to run”). By surface analysis, excurse + -ion. Compare excursus.

Forms

excursions

Synonyms

journey trip jaunt digression excursus

Antonyms

incursion

Related

excursus expedition

Derived

alarums and excursions drift excursion excursioner excursion fare excursionism excursionist excursionize excursion rate excursion steamer power excursion

Verb

  1. To go on a recreational trip or excursion.
    • 1825, Charles Lamb, Letter to Mr. Wordsworth, 6 April, 1825, in The Works of Charles Lamb, Volume I, New York: Harper & Brothers, 1851, p. 249,...
    • After breakfast, that next morning in Chamonix, we went out in the yard and watched the gangs of excursioning tourists arriving and departing with their mules and guides and porters […] - 1880, Mark Twain, chapter 49,...
    • Victoria cows preferred to walk on the plank sidewalks in winter rather than dirty their hooves in the mud by the roadside. They liked to tune their chews to the tap, tap, tap of their feet on the planks. Ladies...

Forms

excursions excursioning excursioned