recurrence
when something happens again, especially something unwanted
the fact of something happening again, especially after a pause or after it seemed to have ended; an instance of this
when an illness or symptom comes back after getting better
the return of an illness, symptom, tumor, or medical condition after a period of improvement or remission
a math rule that uses earlier values to find later values
an equation or rule that defines terms of a sequence, or values of a function such as an algorithm's running time, in terms of earlier terms or smaller inputs
- Base: recurrence
- Plural: recurrence, recurrences
eternal recurrence
1idea of events repeating forever
A philosophical idea that the world and all events repeat in the same way again and again, forever.
- Nietzsche’s idea of eternal recurrence challenges people to affirm their lives.
- The professor gave a lecture on eternal recurrence in modern philosophy.
- The novel plays with the theme of eternal recurrence through repeated scenes.
eternal recurrence
1Endless repetition of existence
the idea that the same events happen again and again forever
- Nietzsche's idea of eternal recurrence asks whether you would live your life again exactly the same way.
- The novel plays with eternal recurrence, returning its characters to the same choices again and again.
- For some readers, the film's time loop suggests a modern version of eternal recurrence.
- The story uses the theme of eternal recurrence.
no evidence of recurrence
1No detected return
tests do not show that the illness has come back
- Her latest scan showed no evidence of recurrence.
- After five years, there was still no evidence of recurrence.
- The report noted no evidence of recurrence at the surgical site.
- The test showed no evidence of recurrence.
- The doctor found no evidence of recurrence.
prevent a recurrence
1Stop it happening again
to stop the same bad thing from happening again
- The airline introduced new safety checks to prevent a recurrence.
- We need to understand what went wrong and prevent a recurrence of the problem.
- After the data breach, the company promised measures to prevent a recurrence.
- They changed the rules to prevent a recurrence.
- We must prevent a recurrence of this mistake.
recurrence interval
1Average time between events
the average time expected between events like floods of a certain size
- Engineers design bridges using estimates of flood recurrence intervals.
- A storm with a 50-year recurrence interval can occur more than once in a person's lifetime.
- The earthquake hazard map is based partly on recurrence intervals for major faults.
- The flood has a long recurrence interval.
- A recurrence interval is an average, not a schedule.
recurrence rate
1How often it returns
the number or percentage of times something comes back
- Researchers compared recurrence rates after the two treatments.
- The recurrence rate was highest in patients who stopped treatment early.
- The city tracks the recurrence rate of software failures after each update.
- The new treatment has a lower recurrence rate.
- The study measured the recurrence rate.
risk of recurrence
1Chance of return
how likely it is that something will come back or happen again
- The drug can reduce the risk of recurrence after surgery.
- Your risk of recurrence depends on the type and stage of the cancer.
- Better drainage should lower the risk of recurrence of flooding in the area.
- The doctor said her risk of recurrence is low.
- Exercise may reduce the risk of recurrence.