circle
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A two-dimensional geometric figure.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
surkuhlSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈsɝkəl
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
geometry
A two-dimensional geometric figure, a line, consisting of the set of all those points in a plane that are equally distant from a given point (center).
Any shape, curve or arrangement of objects that approximates to or resembles the geometric figures.
Any thin three-dimensional equivalent of the geometric figures.
A curve that more or less forms part or all of a circle.
A series ending where it begins, and repeating itself.
The Circle line of the London Underground, originally the Inner Circle.
verb
transitive
To travel around along a curved path.
transitive
To surround.
Form or draw a circle around
transitive
To place or mark a circle around.
intransitive
To travel in circles.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A two-dimensional geometric figure, a line, consisting of the set of all those points in a plane that are equally distant from a given point (center).
Used this way, circle is a specialist word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. This is a mathematical use: it is defined precisely and belongs to working with figures and calculations rather than to ordinary conversation.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Specialist/technical
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Specialized
- Connotation
- Clinical and technical
- Usage feel
- Technical and specialized
Where it naturally appears
- Mathematics
- Geometry
- Academic writing
- Education/classroom
Usage note
In general conversation this sense usually needs explaining — outside its field, people reach for a plainer word.
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use circle
- “The chairs were arranged in a circle.”noun
- “He calculated the circumference of the circle.”noun
- “The machine punched out metal circles.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Move around in a circular motion.
The circle that touches a curve (on the concave side) and whose radius is the radius of curvature.
A ring of arteries at the base of the brain.
Move around in a circular motion.
A chart in which complementary colors (or their names) are arranged on opposite sides of a circle.
A measuring instrument for measuring the angle of magnetic dip (as from an airplane).
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: to travel around along a curved path
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.