Word family noun circle semicircle circulation adjective circular semicircular circulatory verb circle circulate
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishldoce_047_ccirclecir‧cle1 /ˈsɜːkəl $ ˈsɜːr-/ ●●● S2 W2 noun [countable] 1 shapeCIRCLE a completely round shape, like the letter O Draw a circle 10 cm in diameter. Cut the pastry into circles.2 arranged in a circleGROUP OF PEOPLEGROUP OF THINGS a group of people or things arranged in the shape of a circle The children stood round in a circle.circle of a circle of chairs3 group of peopleGROUP OF PEOPLE a group of people who know each other and meet regularly, or who have similar interests or jobscircle of a circle of friendspolitical/legal/literary etc circles He’s well-known in fashionable circles. Johnson was part of the president’s inner circle (=the people who have the most influence).4 theatre British EnglishAPT the upper floor of a theatre, that has seats arranged in curved rows SYN balcony American English5 → go/run around in circles6 → come/go full circle7 → (dark) circles under your eyes → square the circle at square3(5), → vicious circleCOLLOCATIONS – Meaning 3: a group of people who know each other and meet regularly, or who have similar interests or jobsphrasesa circle of friendsOver the years she had established a circle of good friends.a circle of acquaintances (=a group of people that someone knows)She has a wide circle of acquaintances.a circle of admirers (=a group of people who admire someone)When she was young, Sophie had a large circle of male admirers.ADJECTIVES/NOUN + circle academic/political/literary etc circlesThere has been a lot of debate about this issue in political circles.a wide/large circleThey now had a wide circle of acquaintances in the area.a small/narrow circleKen was the centre of a small circle of artists and writers.somebody’s inner circle (=the people who influence someone the most)He was among the prime minister’s inner circle of advisers.a social circleDan and I didn’t mix in the same social circles.the family circleIt’s important for children to have friends outside the family circle.somebody’s immediate circle (=your family and some close friends)We didn’t tell anyone what had happened outside our immediate circle.a close circle (=in which the people know each other very well)He cultivated a close circle of musical acquaintances.a close-knit/intimate circle (=a close one)His intimate circle was tiny.a closed circle (=not open to other people)He didn’t have much experience of life beyond the closed circle of his family.a limited circleHis writing was popular with a limited circle of enthusiasts.verbshave a circle of friends/acquaintances etcShe was beautiful and had a wide circle of admirers.move/mix in a circle (=belong to a particular type of circle)At Harvard he moved in scientific circles.be a member of a circleHe was a powerful member of a circle of financiers.widen your circle (=make it include more people)In London she set about widening her circle.build up/establish a circleMichael built up a wide circle of customers and friends worldwide. Examples from the Corpus
circle• Draw a circle around the right answer.• The teacher drew a circle on the blackboard.• We all stood in a circle and tossed the ball to each other.• a circle of chairs• Hippie dips, or hot pots, are circles of rocks built around natural hot springs.• Over to your right in the distance, half-hidden by a fold of land, is a broken circle of stone monoliths.• Calling circles give discounts when you call other customers of the same long-distance carrier you have.• The flashlight threw a dim circle of light onto the wall.• They had big half circles of pure white skin below.• Without a plan you will end up going in circles and wasting your life away.• It was the 1960s, and the military had become unpopular among academic and intellectual circles.• By 1920 she had written two novels, and had succeeded in winning recognition in literary circles.• The drawbacks of this relationship are its stolid dullness and its tendency to focus power in a small circle of people.• Cut the dough into several small circles.• The circles were there, perfectly.• The circle of stones at Stonehenge is thought to have originally been a temple.• This circle is 4 inches in diameter.• I want you to form two circles, one inside the other. Boys on the outside, girls on the inside.• We hold on to one another, an unsteady circle, and leave the room together.in a circle• You'd think we were driving in circles, but we're not.• All that means is writing done very small, not necessarily in circles, like this one is.• Arrange kiwi slices on top of the filling, overlapping in circles.• The women sat in a circle among the trees.• Description of the game Children all sit in a circle.• Blind Man's Buff Everyone sits in a circle with one person sitting blindfolded in the middle.• Each fills her bucket and comes to stand in a circle around me.• We were steaming in a circle for a reason.political/legal/literary etc circles• Eleanor's husband had secured his first lectureship, and her first novel had been acclaimed in literary circles.• But hardly anyone in political circles, including Republican loyalist redoubts on Capitol Hill, believes that right now.• For the most part these newspapers were owned by persons high in political circles or were subsidized by special interest groups.• After the Gulf War he was promoted rapidly and began to mix more in political circles.• By 1920 she had proved herself by earning a living in a difficult world, and by winning recognition in literary circles.• Yet he had somehow established a reputation in political circles as something out of the ordinary.• The hot topic in political circles here is who might become Sen.• There are various species of Sizewell men - no, in modern political circles, Sizewell people.circlecircle2 ●●○ verb 1 [transitive]CIRCLE to draw a circle around something Circle the correct answer.2 [intransitive, transitive]AROUND/ROUND to move in the shape of a circle around something, especially in the air The plane circled the airport before landing.circle round/above/over etc The pigeons circled above the terrace.→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
circle• We all looked towards the sky where the vultures were circling.• As we walked along the beach, I could see seagulls circling above the cliffs.• The birds flew up noisily, circled, and then they came down and settled in another tree not far away.• Her arms circled his neck, as the words roared unstoppably inside her head.• You were both circling like gladiators.• And then I saw a bee circling my head and I could not move.• Helicopters circled overhead, trying to get pictures of the crime scene.• Helicopters circled overhead.• He circled slowly and methodically up, holding his wings in a stiff, lacquered bow, never flapping, always soaring.• Before leaving, we lowered one of our motorboats to circle the area.• Kelly hit the ball over the fence and circled the bases.• Glenn circled the date on his calendar.• Instead, leaders increasingly see it as their job to circle the wagons.circle round/above/over etc• He swept down the gorge, circled round, and made a second pass at the Falls to lose altitude.• Its engine is missing badly and it's circling round as if looking for a landing-place.• The aeroplane - quite a small one - was circling round far overhead.• In the Sokol valley I was lucky enough to watch a stock circling above for several minutes.• In a larger circle round the central picture are apostles and saints against a dark blue background.• Dealers would put down the phones, crowding in a circle round the contestants.• A pair of night birds circled above, the flapping of their wings and their eerie screeches penetrating the thickening mist.• We had our little mock boxing-matches, in my study, circling round the table as if it were a ring.Origin circle1 (1000-1100) Old French cercle, from Latin circulus, from circus; → CIRCUS 