Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Of or relating to a circle.
- adjective Shaped like or nearly like a circle; round.
- adjective Moving in or forming a circle.
- adjective Circuitous; roundabout.
- adjective Using a premise to prove a conclusion that in turn is used to prove the premise.
- adjective Defining one word in terms of another that is itself defined in terms of the first word.
- adjective Addressed or distributed to a large number of persons.
- noun A printed advertisement, directive, or notice intended for mass distribution.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Having the form of a circle; round.
- Moving in or forming a circle, circuit, or round; returning to the starting-point: as, circular motion.
- Related to the circle: as, circular points. See below.
- Figuratively, passing through a round or circuit of events or experiences; successive in order and recurrent.
- Adhering to a certain cycle of legends; cyclic: applied to certain poets. See
cyclic . - Intended for circulation among certain persons. See
circular letter , below. - Complete; perfect.
- Roundabout; circuitous; circumlocutory.
- noun A letter, notice, or printed paper containing information, or an announcement, or a request, etc., intended for general circulation or for circulation among a particular class or circle of persons; a circular letter: as, a business circular; a diplomatic circular.
- noun [Cf. cyclas, ciclaton.] ‘A kind of long cape or sleeveless cloak worn by women: as, a fur circular.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun A circular letter, or paper, usually printed, copies of which are addressed or given to various persons.
- noun A sleeveless cloak, cut in circular form.
- adjective In the form of, or bounded by, a circle; round.
- adjective repeating itself; ending in itself; reverting to the point of beginning; hence, illogical; inconclusive.
- adjective Adhering to a fixed circle of legends; cyclic; hence, mean; inferior. See Cyclic poets, under
Cyclic . - adjective Addressed to a circle, or to a number of persons having a common interest; circulated, or intended for circulation.
- adjective obsolete Perfect; complete.
- adjective any portion of the circumference of a circle.
- adjective (Math.) curves of the third order which are imagined to pass through the two circular points at infinity.
- adjective (Math.) See under
Function . - adjective mathematical instruments employed for measuring angles, in which the graduation extends round the whole circumference of a circle, or 360°.
- adjective straight lines pertaining to the circle, as sines, tangents, secants, etc.
- adjective (Com.), (Diplomacy) A letter addressed in identical terms to a number of persons.
- adjective (Arith.) those whose powers terminate in the same digits as the roots themselves; as 5 and 6, whose squares are 25 and 36.
- adjective (Geom.) two imaginary points at infinite distance through which every circle in the plane is, in the theory of curves, imagined to pass.
- adjective (Min.) See under
Polarization . - adjective (Naut.) the method of sailing by the arc of a great circle.
- adjective See under
Saw .
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective Of or relating to a
circle - adjective in the
shape of, ormoving in a circle - adjective
circuitous orroundabout - adjective
defining oneword in terms ofanother that isitself defined in terms of the first word - adjective
distributed to a large number of persons - noun A
printed advertisement ,directive , ornotice intended formass distribution ; aflyer - noun In the
Administration , acircular letter - noun dated A
sleeveless cloak , cut in circular form.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective having a circular shape
- noun an advertisement (usually printed on a page or in a leaflet) intended for wide distribution
- adjective describing a circle; moving in a circle
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word circular.
Examples
-
Circular composition traceable in what has been first conceived as pyramidal or rectangular, circular composition as the first intention, expressed either on a vertical plane or in perspective, i.e., circular or elliptical — and composition _made circular_ not by any arrangement of parts, but by sacrifice and elimination of edges and corners are the three forms of composition which produce circular observation.
Pictorial Composition and the Critical Judgment of Pictures Henry Rankin Poore 1899
-
Circular observation in pictures whose structure was apparently not circular leads to the consideration of _circular composition, _ or that class of pictures where the evident intention is to compose under the influence of circular observation — where the circle expresses the first thought in the composition.
Pictorial Composition and the Critical Judgment of Pictures Henry Rankin Poore 1899
-
Frank DiBello, the chief executive of Space Florida—a state-fundedn economic-development agency that normally would be a White House ally—lamented what he called a "circular and endless debate" about NASA's future.
Blastoff Obscures NASA's Troubles Andy Pasztor 2011
-
U.S. official stress that they believe this is what they call circular reporting, when we at CNN say security has been increased at the Golden Gate Bridge, in the next few days you hear conversations in this group that is closely monitored by the intelligence community about security at the Golden Gate Bridge.
-
This is circular logic and results in what I call circular injustice.
-
This is circular logic and results in what I call circular injustice.
-
This is circular logic and results in what I call circular injustice.
-
This is circular logic and results in what I call circular injustice.
-
Consider two planets of mass m and 2m, orbiting the same star in circular orbits.
-
Valuation is intrinsically an exercise in circular reasoning, which is why appraisers rely on comparavle sales.
Matthew Yglesias » Maybe Geithner Knows What He’s Doing 2009
-
If dirt or waste are, as the refrain goes, “matter out of place,” then champions of the “circular economy” — as opposed to the extractive “linear” economy, where “take, make, waste” is the norm — seek to keep matter in place and in play, through reuse, repair, and recycling materials.
Unwanted Corkpull — Real Life Kelly Pendergrast 2023
-
In our current economy, we take materials from the Earth, make products from them, and eventually throw them away as waste – the process is linear. In a circular economy, by contrast, we stop waste being produced in the first place.The circular economy is based on three principles, driven by design:Eliminate waste and pollutionCirculate products and materials (at their highest value)Regenerate natureIt is underpinned by a transition to renewable energy and materials. A circular economy decouples economic activity from the consumption of finite resources. It is a resilient system that is good for business, people and the environment.
Comments
Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.