▪ I. course, n.
(kɔəs)
Forms: 3–7 cours, (4 cource, coures, kours), 4–5 cors, curs, (corps, courss(e, 5 cowrs(s)e, cowurs, kowrs), 5–8 corse, (7 coarse), 4– course.
[α. a. F. cours (11–13th c. curs, cors) = Pr. cors, Sp. curso, It. corso:—L. cursu-m (u-stem) running, run, race, course, f. currĕre to run. (Here the pl was formerly as in F. cours.) β. a. F. course (13th c. in Godef., but little used bef. 16th c.) = Pr. and It. corsa, a fem. form analogous to ns. in -ta, -sa, f. pa. pples. (cf. chute, fuite, venue (:—venuta), assise, mise). The α and β forms are not distinguishable from 15th c.]
I. The action of running, or moving onward.
† 1. The action of running; a run; a gallop on horseback. Obs.
| c 1300 K. Alis. 5003 Barefoot hy gon withouten shoon..Every wilde dere astore, Hy mowen by cours ernen tofore. c 1440 Gesta Rom. ii. 6 (Harl. MS.) Whenne þe seruauntis hirde hire lord crye, they come in with a swift cours, and slow the toode. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon xliii. 146 Huon..made a course to asay his horse. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts (1673) 54 They are most swift in course, and will run a race as fast as any horse. 1623 Bingham Xenophon 11 No man could lay hand vpon an Ostrich..For she runs away flying vsing her feet for course, & lifting vp her selfe with her wings. 1687 Phil. Trans. XVI. 375 The Foot of this Animal [Ostrich] seems contrived for a speedy Course. |
2. a. Onward movement in a particular path, as of the heavenly bodies, a ship, etc.
| c 1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 311/406 Þe heouene geth ene a-boute þoruȝ daiȝe and þoruȝ nyȝt..Heo makez euene þus hire cours and comez a-boute wel sone. 1393 Gower Conf. III. 216, I sigh a barly cake, Which fro the hille..come rollend down..Forth in his cours. a 1619 M. Fotherby Atheom. ii. xi. §4 (1622) 317 These..courses, and recourses of the Starres. 1653 H. Cogan tr. Pinto's Trav. lxiv. 256 We continued our course with our Oars and Sails for seven whole days together. 1718 Rowe tr. Lucan 128 The Moon her monthly Course had now begun. 1732 Pope Ess. Man i. 62 When the proud steed shall know why man restrains His fiery course. 1759 Johnson Rasselas xxxvii, They slackened their course. |
b. Phrases. See II b.
3. A race. arch.
| c 1489 Caxton Sonnes of Aymon vii. 169 Tomorrowe shall be the courses of the horses. 1526 Tindale 1 Cor. ix. 24 They which runne in a course runne all, yet butt one receaveth the rewarde. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iii. 316 O'er th' Elean Plains, thy well-breath'd Horse Impels the flying Carr, and wins the Course. 1801 Strutt Sports & Past. i. iii. 42 The races were then called bell courses, because..the prize was a silver bell. 1807 Robinson Archæol. Græca iii. xxi. 325 Who gained the prize in the course of the stadium. |
† 4. Swift or violent motion; impetus; force.
| c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1725) 179 A pece with a grete cours at ons felle doun alle. c 1400 Destr. Troy 9895 Troiell..Kayres euyn to the kyng..With all the corse of his caple & a kene speire. Ibid. 12479 Þai counted no course of the cold stormys. c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) xxxiii. 151 Þas riuers commez with so grete a course and so grete a birre. |
† 5. The rush together of two combatants in battle or tournament; charge, onset; a passage at arms, bout, encounter. Obs. or Hist.
| c 1325 Coer de L. 454 What knyght was he that rode best cours? 1375 Barbour Bruce xviii. 316 Till thame all ane courss he maiss. c 1420 Avow. Arth. xxiv, Take thi schild and thi spere And ride to him a course on werre. c 1450 Merlin xxvii. 511 And at foure cours thei haue hem perced thourgh. 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 292 Eyther of them set hys speare in the rest to have runne the first course. 1588 Let. in Harl. Misc. (Malh.) II. 77 The Earl himself..horsed and armed did run very many courses, and especially..as they call it ‘the course of the field’ which I had never seen before. 1621 Lady M. Wroth Urania 334 There was tilting, course of field, and many such braue exercises. 1808 Scott Marm. iv. xxi, We ran our course, my charger fell—What could he 'gainst the shock of hell? |
† 6. A raid, inroad. [F. course.] Obs.
| 1651 tr. Hist. Don Fenise 167 The Moores..make sallies and courses upon the Christian countries. 1678 A. Lovell Fontaine's Duties Cav. 62 Not daring to make courses and inrodes to waste and pillage it. |
7. a. The action or practice of coursing, or pursuing game with hounds (esp. hares with greyhounds); a race of dogs (after a hare, etc.).
| c 1386 Chaucer Knt.'s T. 836 This duk wol have of him a cours or tweye With houndes. ? c 1475 Hunt. Hare 24 Yf ye have ony grehowndes hom with yow to bryng, A cours ther schall ye have. a 1535 Fisher Spir. Consol. Wks. (1876) 366 To see a corse at a Hare. 1666 Dryden Ann. Mirab. cxxxi, So have I seen some fearful hare maintain A course, till tired before the dog she lay. 1741 Compl. Fam. Piece ii. i. 308 There are several Courses with Greyhounds, namely, at the Deer, Hare, and Fox. 1792 Osbaldiston Brit. Sportsman 125/1 The course of the deer in the forest or purlieu. 1818 W. H. Scott Brit. Field Sports 353 Many instances have occurred of real racing Courses of the Hare by Greyhounds in an open country. 1891 Field 7 Mch. 347/2 Johnny Moor practically ran a single-handed course, as Brave Briton was unable to raise a gallop. |
† b. The hare or other beast coursed. Obs.
| 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts (1673) 117 Keep them [greyhounds] also in the leam or slip..until they see their course—I mean, the hare or deer. 1704 Dict. Rust. s.v. Greyhound. |
† 8. Running (of liquids); flow, flux. Obs.
| c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 228 Whanne þe cours of þe mater ceessiþ. c 1430 Lydg. in Turner Dom. Archit. III. 39 Borne awaye by cours of the ryuere. 1523 Act 14–15 Hen. VIII, c. 6 Many other common waies..be so depe and noyous, by wearyng and course of water. 1541 R. Copland Galyen's Terap. 2 G j, The euacuacyon of the cours of to moche blode. 1665 Sir T. Herbert Trav. (1677) At the Suns approach [the snow] thaws, and by its violent course or flux of Water causes those inundations [of the Nile]. |
9. Faculty or opportunity of running, moving, flowing, passing current, etc.
| c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 13 Þat humouris mown not have her cours to renne to þe wounde. 1539 Act 31 Hen. VIII, c. 5 That the dere may haue course and recourse into the ground. 1582–8 Hist. James VI (1804) 130 The religioun now established to haue cours, and to be reverenced with all men. 1611 Bible 2 Thess. iii. 1 Pray for vs, that the word of the Lord may haue free course. 1863 W. Phillips Speeches viii. 222 We have got free course for ideas. |
† 10. Passage or circulation (of money, etc.) from hand to hand; currency. to have course: to be current, be in circulation. Obs.
| 1457 Sc. Acts Jas. II (1597) §74 That thay measures, pynt, quart, and firlot haue course, and nane vthers. 1485 Caxton Chas. Gt. 205 The fynest syluer that had thenne cours. 1503 Act 19 Hen. VII, c. 5 All Manner of Pence..having the Print of the Kings Coin, shall have Course, and be Current for Payment. 1512 Act 4 Hen. VIII, c. 19 §14 Those penyes to be taken & have course oonlye for halpens. |
II. The path, line, or direction of running.
11. a. The line along which anything runs or travels; the path or way taken by a moving body, a flowing stream, etc.
| c 1380 Sir Ferumb. 3152 Othere toke þat cors an haste & to þe tour ȝeate þar-wiþ buþ wente. c 1391 Chaucer Astrol. ii. §13 The heiest cours that any sterre fix clymbeth by nyht. 1594 R. Crompton L'Auth. des Covrts, Purpresture may be called ..turning comon waters from the right course. 1665 Hooke Microgr. 130 That a Ship..when the Wind blows, be mov'd in such a way or course to that or t'other place. 1727 Swift Gulliver ii. viii, A sail, which he had a mind to make, being not much out of his course. 1756–7 tr. Keysler's Trav. (1760) III. 358 On the left-hand of the road..the ancient course of the Adige..is still to be seen. 1867 O. W. Holmes Guard. Angel I. 125 So she glided..slowly down the course of the winding river. |
| fig. 1761 Churchill Night Wks. I. 81 In diff'rent courses diff'rent tempers run. |
b. Hence (or from sense 2) various phrases, as to hold, take, bend, change, direct, turn one's course, and the like.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 8488 (Gött.), Þar þe stremis held þair cours. 1393 Gower Conf. III. 295 His cours he nam with saile up drawe. 1548 Hall Chron. 28 b, The said erle..made his course thether. 1590 Shakes. Com. Err. i. i. 118 Homeward did they bend their course. 1595 ― John v. vii. 38 Nor let my kingdomes Riuers take their course Through my burn'd bosome. 1746 Hervey Medit. (1818) 149 Let our passions rise and fall, take this course or that. 1836 Marryat Midsh. Easy xiii, He therefore directed his course to the convoy. 1837 W. Irving Capt. Bonneville III. 238 It was Captain Bonneville's intention to shape his course to the settlements. 1879 C. M. Yonge Cameos Ser. iv. v. 61 Other sermons took the same course. 1889 P. H. Emerson Eng. Idyls 130 He held on his course up the channel. |
12. a. Naut. The direction in which, or point of the compass towards which, a ship sails. Hence transf. of the direction or line pursued by an ocean-current, mountain-chain, vein of ore, etc. Also of aircraft: the (correct) line or direction of flight.
| 1553 S. Cabot in Hakluyt Voy. 259 All courses in Nauigation to be set and kept by the aduice of the Captain. 1555 Eden Decades 351 We sette owre course south and by East. 1669 Sturmy Mariner's Mag. 3 Each several Course hath two Points of the Compass, by which it is expressed..Where there is any place scituated South-east, in respect of another place, we say the Rhomb or Course that runneth betwixt them, is South-east and North-west. 1692 Capt. Smith's Seaman's Gram. i. xvi. 76 The Course, is that Point of the Compass on which the Ship sails. 1747 in Col. Rec. Pennsylv. V. 107 That the said Road shall be Resurveyed and laid out according to the Courses it now runs. 1799 Kirwan Geol. Ess. 159 Mountains are said to have their course in that direction of their length in which they descend, and grow lower. 1815 Falconer's Dict. Marine s.v., When a ship sails in a N.E. direction we say her course is four points 0r 45°. 1872 Raymond Statist. Mines & Mining 308 The Gardner lode is nearly parallel to the Illinois..Its course is north 85° east, true. 1883 Stevenson Treasure Isl. ii. xii, The Hispaniola..sailed a course that would just clear the island on the east. 1905 G. Bacon Balloons vi. 86 To steer his course in a balloon..the aeronaut must so arrange that he is travelling faster or slower than the wind. 1909 C. C. Turner Aerial Navig. xii. 181 Heavier-than-air machines..are..liable to be driven out of their course in strong winds. 1933 Bur. of Standards Jrnl. Research XI. 741 Its [sc. the direction finder's] operation was entirely satisfactory, indications right and left of ‘course’ being very steady and definite. 1945 T. A. Dickinson Aeronautical Dict. 99/1 Course, the route or direction that should be or has been flown by an aircraft. It may be a true course, a magnetic course, or a compass course. |
b. pl. ‘Points’ of the compass.
| 1610 Shakes. Temp. i. i. 53 Lay her a hold, a hold, set her two courses off to Sea againe, lay her off. 1664 in Sir T. Browne's Wks. (1848) III. 526 That night [he] lay six courss of. 1891 Cornh. Mag. June 583 Lay her two courses to the wind. |
13. The ground on which a race is run; a racecourse.
| c 1320 Sir Beues 3516 Þe kours was seue mile long. 1570 Levins Manip. 224 A course, cursus, stadium. 1715–20 Pope Iliad xxiii. 328 Prizes to reward the force Of rapid racers in the dusty course. 1766 Pennant Zool., Horse (R.), The same horse has also run the round course at Newmarket..in six minutes and forty seconds. 1831 Blackw. Mag. XXIX. 880/1 The finest racehorse..is never seen to less advantage than when walking over the course. 1878 Ann. Register 53 A royal party arrived on the course. |
| transf. 1804 Ann. Reg. 413 All the course must have witnessed the very handsome manner in which Mr. Flint brought me in. |
† 14. A fashionable riding or driving place; = F. cours, It. corso. Obs.
| 1646 Evelyn Mem. (1857) I. 236 Rich coaches..full of noblesse, who frequent the course every night. [1670 Cotton Espernon ii. viii. 408 He being..often observ'd in the Cours at Paris in a very rich Coach, drawn by six dapple-Gray Spanish Horses.] 1767 S. Paterson Another Traveller I. 292 The agreeable promenades, the fashionable course—those are the charms of Brussels! |
15. A channel (natural or artificial) in which water flows; a watercourse.
| 1665 Sir T. Herbert Trav. (1677) 164 Pure water, which first glides..through a stone course or channel six foot deep and as many broad. 1737 B. Franklin Earthquakes Wks. 1887 I. 463 The subterraneous waters..cutting out new courses. 1850 W. B. Clarke Wreck of Favorite 85 The water course was about six or eight feet wide, having so rapid a descent that we could not have passed down. |
16. An area of land on which golf is played; a golf-course.
| 1893 J. Thomson Golfing Poems & Songs 10 Some think our course is easy, wi' hazards nane ava'. 1948 H. Cotton This Game of Golf iv. xxxix. 202/1 There was no rough on the courses I saw in the South and West on my 1947 trip. 1982 Times 16 Apr. 16/6 El Kantaoui..is a genuine grass course. |
III. fig. Of time, events, or action.
17. a. The continuous process (of time), succession (of events); progress onward or through successive stages.
| c 1340 Cursor M. 267 (Laud MS. 416) Cource of this world men shull yt calle. 1483 Caxton G. de la Tour E vj b, It is conuenyent that the tyme haue his cours. 1551 T. Wilson Logike (1580) 89 Throughout the whole course of this my rude and simple booke. 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 758 In the course of his life. 1576 Fleming Panopl. Epist. 355 The yeare hath runne his course. 1647–8 Sir C. Cotterell Davila's Hist. Fr. (1678) 2 The whole Course of the Civil Wars. 1769 Robertson Chas. V, V. ii. 274, I return from it to the course of the history. 1882 J. H. Blunt Ref. Ch. Eng. II. 23 The course of events which brought about this rapid fall. 1888 Burgon Lives 12 Gd. Men I. i. 1 Four-and-thirty years have run their course since, etc. |
† b. The space of time over which any process extends; length (in time), duration. Obs.
| 1665 Sir T. Herbert Trav. (1677) 234 The whole course of his [Noah's] life was 950 years. 1707 Curios. in Husb. & Gard. 65 The Course of its Life is sixteen Hours. |
18. Life viewed as a race that is run; career.
| 1382 Wyclif 2 Tim. iv. 7, I haue stryuyn a good stryf, I haue endid the cours, I haue kept the feith. c 1386 Chaucer Sec. Nun's T. 387 Youre cours is doon. 1571 Hanmer Chron. Irel. (1633) 38 Where he made an end of his course, and slept with his fathers. 1672 Sir T. Browne Lett. Friend xx. (1881) 141 They that enter the world with original diseases..make commonly short courses. 1773 Mrs. Chapone Improv. Mind (1774) II. 23 Some pursuits..can only engage us in the beginning of our course. 1841 Miss Mitford in L'Estrange Life III. viii. 117 How much, in its..melancholy close, does it [the life of Scott] resemble the course of Napoleon. |
† 19. The continuous connected purport or tenor of a narrative; drift. Obs.
| 1553 T. Wilson Rhet. (1580) 102 At the first we couch together the whole course of our tale in as small roume as wee can. Ibid. 147 The nature and whole course of a matter, beying largely set out. 1555 Bonner Homilies 72 Al the circumstances of the texte, and course of Scripture dothe importe the contrary. 1576 Fleming Panopl. Epist. 211 Pythagoras now being (as the course of the Epistle offerreth me to thinke) in Italie. 1723 Col. Rec. Pennsylv. III. 223, I send you a copy because I believe it to be in course much the same with what you mentioned to have been received. |
20. Habitual or ordinary manner of procedure; way, custom, practice. course of nature (formerly c. of kind): the ordinary procedure of nature; the natural order, esp. in regard to its constancy or regularity. course of exchange: see exchange n. 4.
| c 1325 Song of Merci 17 in E.E.P. (1862) 119 Heo dud after þe cours of kynde And fleiȝ in-to a treo anon. 1375 Barbour Bruce i. 334 As the courss askis off ȝowtheid. c 1400 Destr. Troy 1583 Of all þe craftes to ken as þere course askit. 1511–2 Act 3 Hen. VIII, c. 23 §7 The same to be ordred..aftur the course of the same Eschequer. 1526 Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 25 b, A certeyn sterre apperynge in y⊇ heuen, aboue the course of nature. 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 441 It cannot flowe at one houre so high..as the common course thereof is accustomed to doe. 1712 Addison Spect. No. 499 ¶4 Her spouse was very old, and by the course of nature could not expect to live long. 1744 Berkeley Siris §134 There is therefore a constancy in things, which is styled the Course of Nature. 1754 London Mag. May 223 The current course of exchange between London and Paris always runs in favour of France. 1757 Burke Abridgm. Eng. Hist. ii. vii, Here in ordinary course they held a monthly Court for the Centenary. 1771 Junius Lett. xlix. 256 The law must take its course. 1848 Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. 85 Never again to imprison any person, except in due course of law. 1866 Crump Banking vii. 146 The quotation of the uncertain price is termed the ‘rate’ or ‘course of exchange’. 1886 Act 49 Vict. c. 22 §4 When the letter..would be delivered in the ordinary course of post. |
† 21. Systematic or appointed order, order of succession. Obs.
| 1558 Close Roll in Vicary's Anat. (1888) 181 The yere of oure Lord God, after the course and rekenynge of the Churche of Englond, a thousand, fyue hundreth, fyftie and seuen. 1586 A. Day Eng. Secretary ii. (1625) 82 Inversion of words besides their common course, as when we say..faults no man liveth without, when order requireth we should say, No man liveth without faults. 1622 Sparrow Bk. Com. Prayer (1661) 48 For the Choice of these Lessons..holy Church observes a several course. |
22. a. A line of (personal) action, way of acting, method of proceeding. to take (such and such) a course: to proceed or act in such and such a way. † to take a course: to act in a particular way or with a particular purpose; to take steps (obs.).
| 1583 Stanyhurst Aeneis ii. (Arb.) 64 Now what counsayl, what course may rightlye be taken? 1632 J. Hayward tr. Biondi's Eromena 23 If you will follow this course, you shall..reape therby many commodities. 1650 in Picton L'pool Munic. Rec. (1883) I. 172 The Maior..shall disburse moneys and take course to see the same fenced. 1691 T. H[ale] Acc. New Invent. p. lvi, If there be not a speedy course taken to remove some Encroachments. 1747 Wesley Prim. Physic (1762) 18 To persevere in this Course is often more than half the Cure. 1826 Disraeli Viv. Grey vi. i. 268, I think our wisest course will be to join the cry. 1848 Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. 53 The Supreme Pontiff was for legal and moderate courses. 1872 E. Peacock Mabel Heron I. iii. 47 He had made up his mind to a certain course of action. |
b. pl. Ways of action, proceedings; personal conduct or behaviour, esp. of a reprehensible kind; ‘goings on’. arch.
| 1592 Greene Groatsw. Wit, I might intreate your rare wits to be imployed in more profitable courses. 1605 Lond. Prodigal v. i. 275 With conceit of his vile courses. a 1670 Hacket Abp. Williams i. (1692) 2, I knew his courses as much..as any man beside. 1684 Contempl. State Man i. xi. (1699) 129 They have dissuaded them from their Evil courses. 1847 Tennyson Princ. iii. 197 Baser courses, children of despair. 1865 M. Arnold Ess. Crit. Pref. 13 But in his old age he has mended his courses. |
IV. A consecutive series.
23. a. A planned or prescribed series of actions or proceedings: as of medicine, diet, study, lectures, etc.
| 1605 D. Boyd in Z. Boyd Zion's Flowers App. (1855) 31/2 [He] will pass his course at the Colledge within two years. 1609 Bp. Hall Passion Serm. Recoll. Treat. (1614) 640 A wonderfull Physitian; a wonderfull course of cure. 1629 J. Cole Of Death 114 A certaine strict course of dyet. c 1750 N. Bliss in Collect. (Oxf. Hist. Soc.) I. 337 Any one of these Classes or Courses will require about three Months. 1781 Gibbon Decl. & F. II. xxxii. 241 A regular course of study and exercise was judiciously instituted. 1801 Med. Jrnl. V. 206, I wished..to put him on a course of chalybeate tonics. 1884 A. R. Pennington Wiclif ix. 290 He began to deliver..a course of lectures on the Epistles of St. Paul. 1891 Illustr. Lond. News 28 Nov. 701/1 The ‘course’ is usually fifteen douche-baths and five tube-baths. |
b. Eccl. The prescribed series of prayers for the seven canonical hours.
| 1570 B. Googe Pop. Kingd. iii. 36 b, To him they certaine prayers giue, that here the Course they call. 1839 J. Yeowell Anc. Brit. Ch. vii. (1847) 72 Shewing..that the Scottish..course was of as ancient and noble parentage as their own. 1844 Lingard Anglo-Sax. Ch. (1858) I. vii. 272 The course, or order of daily prayer for the seven hours. |
c. gen. A number of things following one another in regular sequence; a prolonged series.
| 1828 Ld. Grenville Sink. Fund 25 Formed in a long course of centuries. 1871 Smiles Charac. iii. (1876) 64 Persons who have been housemates for a course of years. |
24. Agric. The system of rotation of crops; a series of crops in rotation.
| 1767 A. Young Farmer's Lett. People 141 Let this experiment last three courses, or twelve years. 1795 Burke Th. Scarcity Wks. 1842 II. 251 The turnip and grass land course, which is the prevalent course on the more or less fertile, sandy and gravelly loams. 1844 Jrnl. Agric. Soc. V. i. 162 It is usually cropped on the four-field or Norfolk course. 1858 Ibid. XIX. i. 48 The general system of working the land is on the four or five years' course; of roots, spring corn, seeds for one or two years, and wheat. |
25. Change-ringing. The successive shifting of the order in which a particular bell is struck in a series of changes; also, a series of changes in which the bells return to their former order.
| 1677 F. S[tedman] Campanol. 82 Upon six bells there are also single and double Courses, viz. twelve changes in every single Course, as in Grandsire Bob, etc., and twenty four changes in every double Course, as in Colledg Bob, etc. 1684 R. H. School Recreat. 94 Some Peals upon five Bells consist of single Courses, wherein are ten Changes, and twelve Courses make the Peal. Ibid. 112 The two hind Bells dodge, and the five first go a perfect Hunting-Course. 1880 Troyte in Grove Dict. Mus. I. 334 Treble Bob..derives its name from the fact that, instead of the plain hunting course, the bells, and more especially the ‘Treble’, have a dodging course. |
V. Each member of a consecutive series.
26. Each of the successive parts or divisions of a meal, whether consisting of a single dish, or of a set of dishes placed upon the table at once.
| c 1325 Coer de L. 3429 Fro kechene come the fyrste cours, With pypes, and trumpes, and tabours. c 1386 Chaucer Sqr.'s T. 58 It nedeth nat for to deuyse At every cours the ordre of hire servyse. c 1477 Caxton Jason 119 How many course and how many dishes at euery cours ther were seruid. 1599 Minsheu Dial. Sp. & Eng. (1623) 6 Bring us some Olives for the third course. 1662 Dryden Wild Gallant i. i, I'll tell you the Story between the Courses. 1773 Goldsm. Stoops to Conq. 11, What's here? For the first course; for the second course; for the dessert. 1858 O. W. Holmes Aut. Breakf.-t. xi. 108 Like one returning thanks after a dinner of many courses. |
† 27. Each of several successive attacks: a. of disease. Obs.
| 1533 Elyot Cast. Helthe (1541) 20 b, Medicinable agaynste gowtes, joynt aches, and feuers, which come by courses. 1762–71 H. Walpole Vertue's Anecd. Paint. (1786) III. 24 He..died of a severe course of the gout. |
b. in Bear-baiting. Obs.
‘The bear was tied to a stake and baited with dogs, a certain number at a time. Each of these attacks was technically termed a course’ (Aldis Wright, Note on Macbeth).
| 1605 Shakes. Macb. v. vii. 2 They haue tied me to a stake, I cannot flye, But Beare-like I must fight the course. 1638 Brome Antipodes iv. i, Also you shall see two ten dogge-courses at the Great Beare. 1829 Scott Jrnl. (1890) II. 276 I am brought to the stake, and must perforce stand the course. |
28. pl. The menstrual discharge, catamenia, menses. Also in sing. (obs. rare).
| 1563 T. Hill Art Garden. (1593) 151 Beware that they which haue their monethly courses, doe not then..come neare. 1597 Gerarde Herbal i. xxxiv. §2. 47 The monthly course of women. 1650 Bulwer Anthropomet. 177 When Maids begin to have their Courses. 1671 Salmon Syn. Med. iii. iii. 389 Chast-tree..stops the courses. 1839 Todd Cycl. Anat. II. 440/1 The..expressions of ‘the illness’ or ‘the courses’ are those in most common use among the vulgar. |
29. A set of things made or used at one time; spec. of candles made at once.
| 1551–2 Will of W. Smythe (Somerset Ho.), Unto the poore..of this parishe a Course of Candelles xvj in the pounde. 1572 in W. H. Turner Select. Rec. Oxford 341 Y{supt} every fuller have eleven corse of kandells and 2 payre of sheres at y⊇ least. 1712 Act 10 Anne in Lond. Gaz. No. 5031/6 No..Maker of Candles..shall begin to make any Course or Making of Candles, without Notice thereof first given. |
30. A row, range, or layer. † a. A layer, stratum. Obs. exc. as in b, c.
| c 1430 Two Cookery-bks. 49 Ley þe iiij. course of þin Fleyssche..as brode as þin cake. 1523 Fitzherb. Husb. §131 Set the nethermoste course vpon the endes, and the seconde course flat vppon the syde. 1553 Brende Q. Curtius F viij, Over those a newe course of trees and stones agayne. 1641 Best Farm. Bks. (Surtees) 146 The breadth that the thatcher taketh up with him, all att a time, afore the ladder bee removed, that is called the course..they will say that hee wanteth..soe many course to the ende of the howse. 1748 Anson's Voy. iii. vii. 487 They..hove out the first course of the Centurion's star-board side. |
b. Building. A single continuous range or layer of stones, bricks, or timber, of the same height throughout, in a wall, the face of a building, etc.; also, a row of slates, tiles, or shingles.
| 1624 Wotton Archit. (1672) 20 That certain Courses or Ledges of more strength then the rest, be interlayed like Bones. 1663 Gerbier Counsel 15 Lay a course of Stone on the Cornish. 1703 Moxon Mech. Exerc. 129 Three, or four, or five course of Bricks to be laid. 1859 Jephson Brittany xiv. 233 In some parts of the walls courses of Roman brick might still be seen. 1869 Phillips Vesuv. ii. 34 Broad bricks laid in several courses among small squared stone. |
c. Mining, etc. A layer or lode of ore, etc.
| 1778 Pryce Min. Cornub. 319 Any Vein or Lode is often termed a Course. 1810 J. T. in Risdon's Surv. Devon p. xiii, They are called by the miner cross lodes, cross courses, or caunters. 1880 Mining Jrnl. 9 Oct., A course of ore..was struck. |
d. In a musical instrument. e. In a file.
| 1874 Knight Dict. Mech., Course..2 (Music.) A set of strings of the same tone placed alongside, and struck one, two, or three at a time, according to the strength of sound desired. Ibid. 3. A row of parallel teeth on the face of a file. One course makes a single-cut file. A course crossing the file at right angles constitutes it a double-cut file. |
f. A flight (of stairs).
| 1828 Scott F.M. Perth xxxii, Seven courses of stairs brought you up hither with fatigue and shortened breath. |
g. A stage (of life).
| 1851 Ruskin Stones Ven. (1874) I. xxv. 273 The beginning, the several courses, and the close of a human life. |
h. A row of stitches or loops across the width of a knitted fabric.
| 1940 in Chambers's Techn. Dict. 1964 McCall's Sewing vii. 98/1 The chains running across the fabric are called ‘courses’ and correspond to the crosswise grain of woven fabrics. |
† 31. a. The time for anything which comes round to each individual in succession; (one's) turn. Obs.
| 1530 Palsgr. 210/1 Cours of order, tovr. 1548 Hall Chron. 116 b, Every company, as their course came, saluted the kyng. 1548 Udall, etc. Erasm. Par. Matt. 105 a, Where men by courses be borne to dye. 1561 Eden Arte Navig. Pref. cc iij, As it were course by course, when we haue the night, they haue the day. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 168 After the death of some noble Gentlemen, my course came next. 1665 G. Havers Sir T. Roe's Voy. E. Ind. 374 Trouble and peace..comfort and discontent, come all of them by courses. |
b. advb. = In turn. Obs. rare.
| c 1611 Chapman Iliad ii. 90 Pelops to Atreus, chief of men; he, dying, gave it course To prince Thyestes, rich in herds. |
32. A set of persons appointed to serve in their turn along with another set or sets.
| 1535 Coverdale 1 Chron. xxviii. [xxvii.] 1 Officers waytinge vpon the kynge, to go of and on after their course euery moneth one..Euery course had foure and twentye thousande. 1611 Bible 1 Chron. xxviii. 13 Also for the courses of the Priests and the Leuites. ― Luke i. 5 A certaine Priest, named Zacharias, of the course of Abia. 1658 J. Harrington Prerog. Pop. Govt. i. xii. (1700) 305 We have the Courses of Israel for the first example of Rotation in a popular Assembly. |
VI. Naut.
33. Each of the sails attached to the lower yards of a ship; now usually restricted to the fore-sail (fore-course) and main-sail (main-course). Formerly including also the stay-sails upon the lower masts: cf. quot. 1769.
| c 1515 Cocke Lorell's B. 12 Mayne corse toke in a refe by force. a 1592 Greene & Lodge Looking Glasse (1861) 134 And severèd our bonnets from our courses. 1627 Capt. Smith Seaman's Gram. vii. 31 The maine saile and the fore saile is called the fore course, and the maine course or a paire of courses. 1694 Sev. Late Voy. i. (1711) 21, I stood to the Southward, close haled under my Courses. 1769 Falconer Dict. Marine (1789) K k b, The courses are the main-sail, fore-sail, and mizen, main-stay-sail, fore-stay-sail, and mizen-stay-sail; but more particularly the three first. 1833 M. Scott Tom Cringle xviii. (1859) 503 Haul the courses up and heave to. 1842 Marryat P. Keene xxxviii, She was pitching and rising without appearing to advance, under her courses and storm staysails. |
VII. Prepositional Phrases.
34. by course. † a. In due course or order; as a consequence, naturally, duly, properly. Obs.
| c 1400 Destr. Troy 1343 Moche sorowe for þe sight & sobbyng of teres..hom be course felle. 1549 Latimer 1st Serm. bef. Edw. VI (Arb.) 30 The kynges grace hath systers..whych by succession and course are inheritours to the crowne. 1601 Cornwallyes Ess. i, So by course my lease might be long. 1742 Lond. & Country Brew. i. (ed. 4) 78 That it may..not be violently forced into a high Fermentation; for then by Course the Salt and Sulphur will be too violently agitated. |
† b. By turns, in turn, alternately. Obs.
| 1548 Udall, etc. Erasm. Par. Matt. ii. 27 And by course questioning with them. 1565–73 Cooper Thesaurus, Alterna vice, by course. 1580 Sidney Arcadia i. 5 They took their journey..Claius and Strephon by course carrying his chest for him. 1622 Sparrow Bk. Com. Prayer (1661) 38 These Psalms we sing or say by course, The Priest one verse, and the people another. 1671 H. M. tr. Erasm. Colloq. 201 As though that could not be known which knows not again by course. c 1680 Beveridge Serm. (1729) I 493 [To] sing to themselves or to another by course..or one after another. |
c. by course of: according to the customary course or procedure of (the law, etc.).
| 1470–85 Malory Arthur xi. viii, Thenne by course of kynde he slepte. 1491 Act 7 Hen. VII, c. 2 §7 He had sued lyvere..by cours of the lawe. 1535 Stewart Cron. Scot. II. 229 Concord wes maid be cours of commoun law. 1603 Shakes. Meas. for M. v. i. 35 Cut off by course of Iustice. 1658 Willsford Scales Comm., Nat. Secrets 198 They..yet expect a pardon by course of Law. |
35. in course. † a. In order, in turn. Obs.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 27160 (Cott.) An er þai aght in curs to kene, qua, quate, qui, quare, quam wit, quen, hu oft-sith, on quat-kin wise. a 1611 Beaum. & Fl. Maid's Trag. i. i, When the rest..Tell mirthful tales in course that fill the room With laughter. 1665 J. Webb Stone-Heng (1725) 158 He that was defied gave the first Stroak, and so they struck in Course. |
b. In the regular, usual, natural, or due order. Now in due course.
| c 1305 St. Edmund 222 in E.E.P. (1862) 77 Of art he radde six ȝer..& siþþe for beo more profound..arsmetrike radde in cours in Oxenford wel faste. 1616 R. C. Times' Whistle v. 1824 The tapster..straight leaves His other guestes, in course to take his cup. a 1704 T. Brown Sat. French K. Wks. 1730 I. 59 Ev'n Oaths, with thee, are only things in course. 1768 Sterne Sent. Journ., Case Delicacy II. 208 Hearing there were words between us, and fearing that hostilities would ensue in course. 1793 Smeaton Edystone L. §321 Everything now appearing to go on successfully and in course. 1876 Black Madcap V. xx. 179 Mr. George Miller arrived in due course. 1883 Besant Garden Fair v, When the boys got promotion, which came in due course. |
c. Naturally, as might be expected; = of course. (Now only in vulgar use.)
| 1722 Wollaston Relig. Nat. ix. 173 The inclination itself..is in this case uppermost, and in course takes the commanding post. 1768 Sterne Sent. Journ., Translation, If he had, I should in course have put the bow I made him into French too. 1805 Monthly Mag. XIX. 425 In course they are convertible words. 1840 Thackeray Catherine v, ‘Oh, in course,’ echoed the tall man. |
† d. In a row or series. Obs.
| c 1400 Destr. Troy 1644 Of crafty colours to know, all in course set. 1665 J. Webb Stone-Heng (1725) 12 Four Stones in Course one within another. |
36. in course of: in (regular) process of; in process of (construction, etc.). in the course of: in the process of, during the progress of. in the course of things: in the ordinary sequence of events.
| a 1656 Bp. Hall Rem. Wks. (1660) 6 Which himself should in course of Nature inherit. 1793 Smeaton Edystone L. §320 No account being received in course of the post. 1837 H. Martineau Soc. Amer. II. 186 A line is now in course of construction to the Hudson. 1865 Trollope Belton Est. xxiii. 267 In course of post there came an answer. |
| 1653 H. Cogan tr. Pinto's Trav. 1 Any crosses that may arrive unto them in the course of their lives. 1681 Dryden Abs. & Achit. i. 549 In the course of one revolving moon, Was chymist, fiddler, statesman, and buffoon. 1790 Paley Horæ Paul. i. 8 Difficulties which presented themselves in the course of our inquiry. 1796 Jane Austen Pride & Prej. ii, In the course of the morning. 1861 Hughes Tom Brown at Oxf. i. (1889) 3 In the course of things men of other ideas came to rule. 1875 Jevons Money (1878) 51 In the course of time..[it] may be introduced. |
37. of course. a. adjectival. Belonging to the ordinary procedure, custom, or way of the world; customary; natural, to be expected. Now esp. in a matter of course.
| 1541 Act 33 Hen. VIII, c. 22 With other clauses of course necessarie for the same. 1580 Lyly Euphues (Arb.) 93 The friendship between man and man as it is common so is it of course. 1642 J. M. Argt. conc Militia 19 (Milton's Wks.) It will be said that the Writ is a Writ of course..and that from this there is no varying. 1709 Steele Tatler No. 109 ¶3 Their Congratulations and Condoleances are equally Words of Course. 1739 in Col. Rec. Pennsylv. V. 392 He thought it a Matter of Course. 1795 Jemima II. 87 You profess a wish to oblige me, said Rosina; if only words of course, I beg you will spare my ear. 1818 Cruise Digest (ed 2) II. 88 A case in which this right is supported, as a thing of course. 1849 Macaulay Speech in Misc. Writings (1889) 749, I am not using a mere phrase of course, when I say, etc. 1862 Trollope Orley F. xiii. 99 As for her innocence, that was a matter of course. He knew that she was innocent. |
b. adverbial. In ordinary or due course, according to the customary order, as a natural result. † of common course: ordinarily, as an every-day occurrence.
| 1542 Udall Erasm. Apoph. 53 a, Of course and custom. 1548 Hall Chron. 9 b, A pardon..which either is graunted of course, or y⊇ kyng of pytee and compassion geveth. 1647 Clarendon Hist. Reb. iii. (1702) I 207 No man presuming to intimate, that it should be granted in any other manner than of course it had been. 1657 Heylin Ecclesia Vindicata ii. 472 That not once or twice, but of common course. 1736 Butler Anal. ii. vi. 325 Information..is by no means always given us of course. 1772 Junius Lett. Ded. (1804) I. 9 To dissolve the present parliament a year or two before it expires of course. 1845 Stephen Laws Eng. II. 391 It was at one time made a question whether giving the royal assent to a single bill did not of course put an end to the session. |
c. Hence, in qualification of the whole clause or sentence: Naturally, as will be expected in the circumstances; for obvious reasons, obviously. (Sometimes used as an emphatic affirmative reply.)
| 1823 J. D. Hunter Captiv. N. Amer. 39 She made some very particular inquiries about my people, which, of course, I was unable to answer. 1838 Dickens O. Twist xxxiv. 266 You will tell her I am here?..Of course. 1861 M. Pattison Ess. (1889) I. 32 It would be easy, of course, to exaggerate this truth of the continuity of history into a falsehood. Mod. And you were present? Of course; why not? |
38. on or upon course. † a. = 37 b. Obs.
| 1618 Bolton Florus iii. x. 199 The Tide withdrawing upon course, during the skirmish. 1626 T. Ailesbury Passion Serm. 24 Thus Pilate..is desirous that Christ might be pardoned upon course. 1677 Govt. Venice 7 When that is held, the rest do cease on course, as formerly all the Courts in Rome did during their Comitia. 1711 Addison Spect. No. 16 ¶3 When I see the Name Cœlia..at the Bottom of a Scrawl, I conclude on course that it brings me some account of a fallen Virgin, etc. |
b. Of an aircraft etc.: (proceeding) in the direction set. Also fig.
| 1948 ‘N. Shute’ No Highway ii. 41 The aircraft was on course at 16,500 feet. 1964 F. Chichester Lonely Sea & Sky xii. 132 If the compass showed that the plane was on course afterwards, then the correct drift was in fact seven and a half degrees. 1981 Times 16 Nov. 11/4 On October 1..numbers were down by 52,000. In other words we were exactly on course. 1985 Times 6 May 2/8 If the NCCL were on course, it would offend both sides equally on different issues. |
c. With for or an infinitive, expressing the end to which the course is directed.
| 1981 Times 6 Nov. 19/5 The Government is still on course for an estimated PSBR of {pstlg}10,500m. 1985 Times 3 May 2/2 Many Labour councillors..are now firmly on course to break the law. 1985 Observer 5 May 27/1 The world's favourite airline should, this week, show it is well on course for market. |
39. out of course (adj. and adv.). Out of proper order or measure, irregularly, improperly.
| c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 209 Þe pape sauh out of cours þe wikkednes of Jon. 1548 Hall Chron. 29 b, Master Jhon Petit..wrested scripture and doctors so far out of course. 1553 N. Grimalde Cicero's Offices (1556) 85 He spake manie thinges notablie, but this, oute of course. |
VIII. 40. Comb., as course-clearer, one who clears the course for a race; course-dinner ? Obs., a dinner consisting of several courses; course-end (Change-ringing), see sense 25; course-indicator, an apparatus for determining the course of a ship; course-setting sight Aeronaut., a sight by means of which one's course can be set; course-stone, one of a course or series of stones (see 30 b).
| 1897 Westm. Gaz. 15 July 7/1 The course-clearers ring, and the enthusiasts yell. |
| 1895 Outing (U.S.) XXVI. 462/2 A course-dinner followed by the enjoyment of Ada Rehan's Rosalind and Lewis's Touchstone. 1899 Westm. Gaz. 16 Mar. 10/2 Mr. Kipling was able to sit up in bed last evening, and to partake of a course dinner. |
| 1883 Birm. Daily Post 19 Oct. 7 The peal has the tenors together throughout, and is in six parts with 120 ‘course ends’. |
| 1900 Westm. Gaz. 14 Feb. 10/2 An absolutely correct magnetic course indicator. 1904 Ibid. 18 Aug. 1/3 A holophote course-indicator for preventing collisions at sea. |
| 1922 Encycl. Brit. XXX. 43/1 The course-setting sight..indicates the course to be steered for any given track, and the time taken in flying any desired distance in that direction. 1940 Illustr. London News CXCVII. 219/2 The latest type bomb-sights in use in the R.A.F. may not be described, but the type illustrated gives a good idea of how a course-setting sight is operated. |
| 1610 Holland Camden's Brit i. 252 Stones called Corsestones, Weighing 12 tunne. 1665 J. Webb Stone-Heng (1725) 17 He sets down..twelve Tun unto his Course-stones, and six or seven to his Cronets over them. |
▪ II. course, v.
(kɔəs)
Also 5 cours, 6 cource, cowrsse, coarse.
[f. course n. in various senses, giving verbal senses unconnected with each other.]
1. To pursue or hunt (game) with hounds; spec. to hunt (hares) with greyhounds in view (not by scent): see coursing vbl. n. a. trans.
| 1550 J. Coke Eng. & Fr. Heralds (1877) 57 Falow-dere, wylde bores, and wolves for noble men to course. 1555 Eden Decades 2 As it hadde byn hares courced with grehoundes. 1581 Mulcaster Positions xxv. (1887) 99 To hunt a hare, and course a hart. 1771 E. Long Trial Dog ‘Porter’ in Hone II. 209 He'll never course hares again. 1870 D. P. Blaine Encycl. Rural Sports v. 551 The animals which were coursed by the ancients were of very different kinds, such as the wild ass, the stag, the mountain goat, the wolf, jackal, boar, fox, hare, etc. |
b. absol.
| 1568 Hist. Jacob & Esau v. i. in Hazl. Dodsley II. 246 He coursed and coursed again with his dogs here. 1596 Shakes. Tam. Shr. Induct. ii. 49 Say thou wilt course, thy gray⁓hounds are as swift As breathed Stags. 1637 N. Whiting Albino & B. 32 He bowled, coursed, angled in the brooke, His pleasure was his joy. 1841 Lever C. O'Malley xxiii, She hunted with Smith Barry's hounds..she coursed, practised at a mark with a pistol. |
c. trans. to course away.
| 1812 S. Rogers Columbus iii. 3 With hawk and hound I coursed away the hour. |
2. trans. To chase, pursue, run after.
| 1586 J. Hooker Girald. Irel. in Holinshed II. 135/2 Sir John Perot..so coursed and followed them..that he left him no one place to rest in. 1600 Shakes. A.Y.L. ii. i. 39 The big round teares Cours'd one another downe his innocent nose In pitteous chase. 1786 tr. Beckford's Vathek (1868) 25 Some coursing butterflies, others culling flowers. 1873 G. C. Davies Mount. & Mere xvi. 133 Inky banks of clouds..coursed each other rapidly across the pale stormy blue of the heavens. |
† 3. To pursue, persecute, worry, trouble. Obs.
| 1466 Plumpton Corr. 17 To make prossis against my Coussin Godfrey, to bring the issues and profits that he hath received..and else to cours him from day to day. 1600 Holland Livy iii. xi. 96 [He] coursed and troubled [agitare] the Commons, and persecuted the Tribunes as it were with open warre. |
† 4. To chase or drive with blows; hence, to drub, trounce, thrash. Obs.
| 1585 Abp. Sandys Serm. (1841) 37 He bestirred him with his whip, coursed those simoniacal choppers and changers. 1589 tr. Marprel. Epit. C iv b, Let me take you againe in such a pranck, and ile course you. 1596 Spenser F.Q. v. iv. 44 That mighty yron man With his strange weapon..Them sorely vext, and courst, and overran. 1611 Cotgr., Accommoder..also, to course, beat, cudgell. Ibid. s.v. Robbe, He courst his coat or Jacket soundly. |
5. intr. To run or gallop about, to run as in a race, to career; also transf. of liquids, etc.
| a 1533 Ld. Berners Gold. Bk. M. Aurel. (1546) F viij, A trumpettour, that coursed as a knyght vpon a horse. 1598 R. Grenewey Tacitus' Ann. xii. viii. (1622) 165 Caractacus coursing hither & thither. 1602 Shakes. Ham. i. v. 66 Swift as Quick-siluer, it courses through The natural Gates and Allies of the Body. 1674 tr. Scheffer's Lapland xxvii. 125 To course through Woods and Mountains. 1735 Somerville Chase i. 187 In wanton Rings Coursing around..The merry multitude disporting play. 1824 W. Irving T. Trav. I. 266 Coursing like a colt across its lawns. 1850 Mrs. Stowe Uncle Tom's C. x. 79 Raising her hand to her face to wipe off the tears that were coursing down her cheeks. |
| fig. 1842 Tennyson Gardener's Dau. 217 We spoke of other things; we coursed about The subject most at heart. |
† b. to course it: in same sense. Obs.
| 1633 G. Herbert Temple, Sinnes Round i, Sorrie I am, That my offences course it in a ring. 1691 Ray Creation (1714) 141 She [the Mole] courses it not on the ground like a rat or mouse, but lives under the earth. |
† c. fig. To ‘run’ over or through successively a number of particulars, writings, etc. Obs.
| 1598 Shakes. Merry W. i. iii. 72 She did so course o're my exteriors with such a greedy intention. 1641 Milton Reform. i. (1851) 16 It were tedious to course through all his writings. a 1734 North Lives (1826) III. 337 After they have coursed through all sciences and literate enquiries. |
6. intr. To steer or direct one's course; to take or pursue a particular course.
| 1555 Eden Decades 61 Coursynge alonge by all the coastes and goulfes. 1725 De Foe Voy. round World (1840) 343 They took the southernmost channel..and thus they coursed for three or four days. 1772 Ann. Reg. 134/2 The Roman roads that coursed from Mancunium to the neighbouring stations. 1823 J. D. Hunter Captiv. N. Amer. 32 We..then coursed down a considerable stream. 1853 Kane Grinnell Exp. xlv. (1856) 419 We coursed more than the third of a mile in almost a direct line. |
† 7. intr. To run a course (in a fight or tournament). Obs.
| 1596 Spenser F.Q. iv. iv. 30 So as they courst, and turneyd here and theare. |
† b. Oxford Univ. To oppose a thesis in the Schools. Obs.
| 1660 [see coursing vbl. n. 3]. 1691 Wood Ath. Oxon. I. 479 He did with as much facility course (or oppose his Antagonist) in the publick Schools, as in Latine. |
8. trans. [from 5.] To run or move swiftly over (a place) or along (a particular path).
| 1789 Wordsw. Even. Walk 21 In thoughtless gaiety I coursed the plain. 1801 Southey Thalaba vi. xxvii, Tears coursed his burning cheek. 1870 Bryant Iliad I. iv. 117 Fauns..tired With coursing the wide pastures. |
b. To follow the course of. rare.
| 1823 J. D. Hunter Captiv. N. Amer. 66 We proceeded onward, coursing occasionally the streams, and then crossing one range of hills after another. |
9. causal. To cause to run, exercise in running; to give (a horse) a run; to use (greyhounds) in coursing.
| 1568 Grafton Chron. II. 534 She would course horses, and ride them to water. 1600 Hakluyt Voy. (1810) III. 147 Some of the Mariners went on shore to course dogs. 1684 R. H. School Recreat. 29 Course not your Horse hard 4 or 5 Days before your Match. a 1819 Wolcott (P. Pindar) Wks. I. 19 The greyhound ye desired to course. 1868 Rogers Pol. Econ. ii. (ed. 3) 10 Two grey-hounds will run down more hares, if they course in unison, than if they are coursed separately. |
† 10. fig. To turn over in one's mind. Obs. rare.
| 1600 Holland Livy xl. viii. 1064 He walked up and downe alone..coursing and discoursing [volutans] many matters in his head. |
† 11. To put through a course (of physic). Obs.
| 1773 Goldsm. Stoops to Conq. ii. Wks. (Globe) 657/2 You have been dosing me ever since I was born..you have thoughts of coursing me through Quincy next spring. |
12. Mining. (See quot.)
| 1851 Greenwell Coal-trade Terms Northumb. & Durh. 17 Coursing, conducting the air backwards and forwards through old workings, by means of stoppings, properly arranged. Air is usually coursed or shethed ‘two and two’, or ‘three and three’, according to the greater or less quantity of fire-damp evolved. |
▪ III. course, v.2
to exchange, etc.: see corse v.
▪ IV. course
obs. f. coarse, corse, coss n.2, curse.