cursor

noun

cur·sor | \ ˈkər-sər

, -ˌsȯr\

Definition of cursor

: a movable item used to mark a position: such as

a : a transparent slide with a line attached to a slide rule

b : a visual cue (such as a flashing vertical line) on a video display that indicates position (as for data entry)

Examples of cursor in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The first paralyzed person to receive a brain implant that allowed him to control a computer cursor was Matthew Nagle. — Elizabeth Lopatto, The Verge, "Elon Musk unveils Neuralink’s plans for brain-reading ‘threads’ and a robot to insert them," 17 July 2019 These devices shine an infrared light into your eyes and follow the movement of your pupils, like a cursor on a screen. — Arielle Pardes, WIRED, "Comcast Now Lets You Control Your TV With Your Eyes," 17 June 2019 In each case, the pattern was the same: establish a maximum pressure, then perform a longer, game-like version of the same exercise, in which the object was to control a cursor’s rise and fall with the intensity of your squeeze. — Zachary Lewis, cleveland.com, "Activ5 device packs big punch as ‘tiny gym in your pocket’: Stretching Out," 1 Aug. 2019 Players move the cursor using the motion controls of the DualShock 4. — Gieson Cacho, The Mercury News, "Preview: Painting happy little trees in ‘Concrete Genie’ reminds me of Bob Ross," 30 July 2019 Researchers can then use the output of a BCI to translate the neural activity for specific movements into directional controls for a cursor on a computer screen. — Quanta Magazine, "Brains Cling to Old Habits When Learning New Tricks," 27 Mar. 2018 The key action is good and features full-sized cursor keys. — Gordon Mah Ung, PCWorld, "MSI GS65 Stealth Thin Review: This thin gaming laptop features 9th-gen Core and GTX 1660 Ti," 6 June 2019 He and Ohanian put a lot of time into making popular script software Final Draft work for them and detailed each cursor movement or letter entered into a URL. — Nathan Mattise, Ars Technica, "Searching: You’ve never seen Windows XP and load screens like this," 25 Aug. 2018 Take Elle Fanning, who last night hit the streets in a campy look that was the perfect pre-cursor to Met Gala 2019. — Christian Allaire, Vogue, "Confused About “Camp”? For Elle Fanning, the Met Gala Theme Is a Cinch," 5 Apr. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'cursor.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for cursor

borrowed from Latin cursor "runner, courier," from currere "to run" + -tor, agent suffix — more at current entry 1

Note: For cursor as agent noun of currere in place of expected *co(r)stor see note at course entry 1. As with other Latin deverbal derivatives, the zero grade ablaut of the past participle has been generalized with all suffixes ending in -t-.

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More Definitions for cursor

cursor

noun

English Language Learners Definition of cursor

: a mark on a computer screen that shows the place where information is being entered or read

See the full definition for cursor in the English Language Learners Dictionary

cursor

noun

cur·sor | \ ˈkər-sər

, -ˌsȯr\

Kids Definition of cursor

: a symbol (as an arrow or blinking line) on a computer screen that shows where the user is working

cursor

Definition of cursor

Examples of cursor in a Sentence

First Known Use of cursor

History and Etymology for cursor

English Language Learners Definition of cursor

Kids Definition of cursor

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