recursion
n.n. a process where something is defined or built by repeating itself. In computer code or math, it happens when a rule or function calls itself to solve a smaller part of the same problem.
n. the process of defining a function or procedure in terms of itself. It involves a base case to terminate the repetition and a recursive step that reduces the problem's complexity.
The programmer used recursion to sort the list of names.
Many mathematical formulas use recursion to calculate a result based on the value of the previous step.
While recursion can lead to elegant and concise code for traversing tree structures, it requires careful management of memory to avoid a stack overflow during deep nesting.
Borrowed from Latin recursiō (“the act of running back or again, return”), from recurrō (“run back; return”), from re- (“back, again”) + currō (“run”).
Often used in technical contexts like computer science, mathematics, and linguistics.