circular

English

Etymology

From Middle English circuler, circuleer, circulere, from Old French circulier, from Late Latin circularis, from Latin circulus, diminutive of circus (“ring”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈsɜː.kjə.lə(ɹ)/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈsɝ.kjə.lɚ/

  • Audio (US)

    (file)

• Hyphenation: cir‧cu‧lar

Adjective

circular (comparative more circular, superlative most circular)

1. Of or relating to a circle.
2. In the shape of, or moving in a circle.
   • 1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter V, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:

     Here, in the transept and choir, where the service was being held, one was conscious every moment of an increasing brightness; colours glowing vividly beneath the circular chandeliers, and the rows of small lights on the choristers' desks flashed and sparkled in front of the boys' faces, deep linen collars, and red neckbands.

3. Circuitous or roundabout.
4. Referring back to itself, so as to prevent computation or comprehension; infinitely recursive.

   circular reasoning

   Your dictionary defines "brave" as "courageous", and "courageous" as "brave". That's a circular definition.

   a circular formula in a spreadsheet

   I changed the definition of "sex" from "to have sex" to "to have sexual intercourse"; a dictionary definition must never be circular; using the word being defined to define itself.

5. Distributed to a large number of persons.
   • 1827, Henry Hallam, The Constitutional History of England from the Accession of Henry VII. to the Death of George II. , volumes (please specify |volume=I or II), London: John Murray, , →OCLC:

     a proclamation of Henry III., […] doubtless circular throughout England

6. (obsolete) Perfect; complete.
   • 1632, Philip Massinger, Maid of Honour, act I, scene 2:

     A man so absolute and circular / In all those wished-for rarities that may take / A virgin captive.

7. (archaic) Adhering to a fixed circle of legends; cyclic; hence, mean; inferior.
   • February 1, 1711, John Dennis, on the Genius and Writings of Shakespeare

     Had Virgil been a circular poet, and closely adhered to history, how could the Romans have had Dido?

Synonyms

• ringlike
• ring-shaped
• round-like

Hyponyms

• semicircular

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Noun

circular (plural circulars)

1. An advertisement, directive or notice intended for mass circulation.

   Synonym: (advertisement) flyer

   • 1991, Stephen Fry, The Liar, London: Heinemann, →OCLC, page 55:

     The pigeon-hole was also stuffed with circulars and hand-bills.

2. Short for circular letter.
3. Short for circular file.
4. (dated) A sleeveless cloak cut from a circular pattern.
5. A shuttle bus with a circular route.

Translations

See also

• advertisement
• booklet
• brochure
• catalogue, catalog
• flier, flyer
• handbill, hand bill
• junk mail
• leaflet
• pamphlet

Verb

circular (third-person singular simple present circulars, present participle circularing, simple past and past participle circulared)

1. To distribute circulars to or at.
   • 1851, G. W. Muir, Report on the State of Engine and Other Furnaces, page 19:

     The result of the sending of these notices confirms me in the opinion, that it will be necessary to adopt legal means with the great majority of these parties. The circulars have had little effect. In fact, the parties have been “circulared" into the notion that nothing more formidable will ever be sent to them.

   • 1873, Old and new - Volume 8, page 101:

     It is true, that, to obtain these, some six hundred or more institutions were circulared, and a good many of these a second time.

   • 1909, American Life Convention, Report of the Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Life Convention, page 42:

     I do not mean to say we have never employed some of them who come to us—but we have never circulared agents or gone after them.

   • 1962, Harrie Sheridan Baketel, Medical Economics - Volume 39, page 141:

     If you've ever been circulared by drug repackaging houses, you know they usually offer to trade a selection of office supplies for your unused drug samples.

2. To extend in a circular direction.
   • 2008, Donald E. Wagner, Kenneth Cragg, Dying in the Land of Promise, page 116:

     The theme can be expressed in an architectural analogy. For, of all contriving to encover space, the arch — alone or 'circulared' into the dome — is the most ingenious.

Asturian

Etymology

Borrowed from Late Latin circularis, from Latin circulus.

Adjective

circular (epicene, plural circulares)

1. circular

Related terms

• círculu

Verb

circular (first-person singular indicative present circulo, past participle circuláu)

1. to circle

Conjugation

Related terms

• círculu

Catalan

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Late Latin circulāris, from Latin circulus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central)
• IPA^(key): (Balearic)
• IPA^(key): (Valencian)

Adjective

circular m or f (masculine and feminine plural circulars)

1. circular

Noun

circular f (plural circulars)

1. circular

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Late Latin circulāre, post-Augustan form of Latin circulārī.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic)
• IPA^(key): (Valencian)

Verb

circular (first-person singular present circulo, first-person singular preterite circulí, past participle circulat)

1. to circulate
2. to move, to travel

Conjugation

Related terms

• cercle

Further reading

• “circular” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “circular”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024
• “circular” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “circular” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Galician

Etymology

Borrowed from Late Latin circularis, from Latin circulus.

Adjective

circular m or f (plural circulares)

1. (geometry) circular

Related terms

• círculo

Portuguese

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Late Latin circulāris (“circular round”), from Latin circulus, corresponding to círculo +‎ -ar.

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: cir‧cu‧lar

Adjective

circular m or f (plural circulares)

1. circular; round

   Synonyms: redondo, rotundo

   Vimos um objeto circular sobrevoando a cidade.

   We saw a round object flying over the city.

2. (Brazil) running in a loop

   Ônibus circular.

   Shuttle bus.

3. (rhetoric, lexicography) circular (referring back to itself)

   Definição circular.

   Circular definition.

4. circular (distributed to a large number of people)

   Carta circular.

   Circular letter.

Noun

circular f (plural circulares)

1. circular letter (official communication distributed to interested parties)
2. (Portugal) ring road

   Synonyms: (Portugal) circunvalação, (Brazil) anel rodoviário, (Brazil) rodoanel

Noun

circular m (plural circulares)

1. (Brazil) circular (shuttle bus that runs in a loop)

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Latin circulāre (“to make round”), post-Augustan form of Latin circulārī.

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: cir‧cu‧lar

Verb

circular (first-person singular present circulo, first-person singular preterite circulei, past participle circulado)

1. (transitive) to circle (to place a circle around)

   Circulem a resposta correta. ― Circle the correct answer.

   Synonym: circundar

2. (intransitive) to circle (to move around an axis)

   Nosso planeta circula ao redor do Sol. ― Our planet circles the Sun.

   Synonyms: girar, rodar

3. (intransitive) to circulate (to move through a circuit)

   O sangue parou de circular em suas veias. ― Blood stopped flowing in his veins.

4. (intransitive) to flow freely

   Abri as janelas para o ar circular. ― I opened the windows to get a better airflow.

5. (intransitive, or transitive with por) to move about; to walk around

   Depois que a neve derreteu, as pessoas começaram a circular pelo parque. ― After the snow melted, people started walking around the park.

   Circulem! ― Get going!

6. (transitive) to circulate; to disseminate; to spread

   Os alunos circularam um rumor muito maldoso. ― The students spread a nasty rumour.

7. (intransitive) to circulate; to be disseminated; to be spread; to go around

   Circulava uma notícia sobre o acidente. ― News about the accident had been going around.

   1. (economics) to circulate (to be valid as currency)

      O euro deixará de circular no Reino Unido. ― The euro will no longer circulate in the United Kingdom.

   2. (media) to circulate (to be published and distributed)

      Este é o único jornal que ainda circula. ― This is the only newspaper still in circulation.

Conjugation

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French circulaire.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /t͡ʃirkuˈlar/

Adjective

circular m or n (feminine singular circulară, masculine plural circulari, feminine and neuter plural circulare)

1. circular

Declension

Related terms

• cerc

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Spain) /θiɾkuˈlaɾ/
• IPA^(key): (Latin America) /siɾkuˈlaɾ/
• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Syllabification: cir‧cu‧lar

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Late Latin circulāris, from Latin circulus.

Adjective

circular m or f (masculine and feminine plural circulares)

1. circular

Derived terms

Noun

circular f (plural circulares)

1. flyer, circular (advertisement)

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Late Latin circulāre, post-Augustan form of Latin circulārī. Doublet of the inherited cerchar.

Verb

circular (first-person singular present circulo, first-person singular preterite circulé, past participle circulado)

1. to circulate
2. to go round, move around
3. to scram, clear off

Conjugation

Related terms

References

Further reading

• “circular”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014