circle
[noun]
Synonyms:
- ring, disc, globe, orb, sphere
- group, clique, club, company, coterie, set, society
[verb]
Synonyms:
- go round, circumnavigate, circumscribe, encircle, enclose, envelop, ring, surround

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Related Words: acquaintance, cronies, friends, intimates, associates, companions, comrades

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English Thesaurus: square, circle, semicircle, triangle, rectangle, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. cir‧cle¹ S2 W2 /ˈsɜːkəl $ ˈsɜːr-/ noun [countable]
[Word Family: noun: circle, semicircle, circulation; adjective: circular, semicircular, circulatory; verb: circle, circulate]
[Date: 1000-1100; Language: Old French; Origin: cercle, from Latin circulus, from circus; ⇒ circus]

1. SHAPE a completely round shape, like the letter O:
Draw a circle 10 cm in diameter.
Cut the pastry into circles.

2. ARRANGED IN A CIRCLE 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 chairs

3. GROUP OF PEOPLE a group of people who know each other and meet regularly, or who have similar interests or jobs
circle of
a circle of friends
political/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 English the upper floor of a theatre, that has seats arranged in curved rows Synonym : balcony American English

5. go/run around in circles to think or argue about something without deciding anything or making progress

6. come/go full circle (also turn full circle British English) to end in the same situation in which you began, even though there have been changes in the time in between:
Sooner or later, fashion comes full circle.

7. (dark) circles under your eyes dark areas under your eyes that you have when you are very tired
⇒ square the circle at square³(5), ⇒ vicious circle

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. circle² verb
[Word Family: noun: circle, semicircle, circulation; adjective: circular, semicircular, circulatory; verb: circle, circulate]

1. [transitive] to draw a circle around something:
Circle the correct answer.

2. [intransitive and transitive] 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.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

circle
noun
I. shape
ADJ. complete, full The stones form a complete circle. How long does it take for the dial to rotate through a full circle?
concentric | widening The water rippled in widening circles round the fountain.
overlapping a design of overlapping circles
tight He turned the car in a tight circle.
half | Antarctic, Arctic, polar
VERB + CIRCLE draw | describe (technical), go around/round in If you follow the road signs you will simply find yourself going round in a circle.
form, make | cut out
PREP. in a/the ~ The children stood in a circle. The planets move in circles round the sun.
~ of
PHRASES the area/circumference/diameter/radius of a circle, the centre/middle of a circle

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

circle
II. group of people
ADJ. wide She has a wide circle of acquaintances.
narrow, small | charmed, close/closed, intimate, magic, select He invited only a select circle of friends to the wedding.
exalted, high | immediate They treat anyone outside their immediate circle with suspicion.
inner He's joined the inner circles of the court early in his career.
academic, aristocratic, artistic, business, court, diplomatic, government, intellectual, literary, official, political, royal, social, sporting, theatrical ~s She moves in the highest social circles.
family
VERB + CIRCLE have | move in My brother and I move in completely different circles (= we have very different friends).
join | widen You need to widen your circle of friends.
PREP. in a/the ~ Talk of religion was forbidden in the family circle. friends in government circles
PHRASES a circle of acquaintances/admirers/friends

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

circle
III. in a theatre
ADJ. dress, upper Our seats are in the front row of the dress circle.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

circle
verb
I. move in a circle
ADV. slowly The helicopter was circling slowly, very low.
overhead A buzzard was circling overhead.
PREP. above Several airliners were circling above the airport.
around/round The vultures were already circling around the dead animal.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

circle
II. draw a circle round sth
PHRASES circle sth in black, red, etc. She circled her birthday in red on the calendar.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

circle

a circle of friends
Over 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.
academic/political/literary etc circles
There has been a lot of debate about this issue in political circles.
a wide/large circle
They now had a wide circle of acquaintances in the area.
a small/narrow circle
Ken was the centre of a small circle of artists and writers.
sb’s inner circle (=the people who influence someone the most)
He was among the Prime Minister’s inner circle of advisers.
a social circle
Dan and I didn’t mix in the same social circles.
the family circle
It’s important for children to have friends outside the family circle.
sb’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 circle
His writing was popular with a limited circle of enthusiasts.
have a circle of friends/acquaintances etc
She 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 circle
He 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 circle
Michael built up a wide circle of customers and friends worldwide.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

square a shape with four straight sides that are equal in length and four angles of 90 degrees
circle a round shape that is like an O
semicircle half a circle
triangle a shape with three straight sides and three angles
rectangle a shape with four straight sides and four angles of 90 degrees
oval a shape like a circle, but that is longer than it is wide
cylinder an object in the shape of a tube
cube a solid object with six equal square sides
pyramid a shape with a square base and four triangular sides that meet in a point at the top
sphere a shape like a ball
circular/round shaped like a circle:
a circular table
semicircular shaped like a semicircle:
a semicircular arch above the door
triangular shaped like a triangle:
sails divided into triangular sections
rectangular shaped like a rectangle:
a simple rectangular building
cylindrical shaped like a cylinder:
The statue is on top of a tall cylindrical column.
spherical shaped like a ball:
The planet Saturn is not completely spherical.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

stage the raised area on which the actors, musicians etc perform:
He came on stage to rapturous applause.
The band will appear live on stage for the first time in three years.
the stalls British English, the orchestra American English the lower level of seats:
He had a seat in the stalls.
We paid $100 for a seat in the orchestra.
the circle British English, the balcony the higher level of seats:
They were sitting in the balcony.
the orchestra pit the space below the stage where the musicians sit:
The actress fell into the orchestra pit.
box office the place in a theatre where you buy tickets:
Collect your tickets at the box office.
programme British English, program American English a small book that you buy when you go to the theatre that gives information about the play and the performers:
His name is not in the programme.
Do you want me to buy you a program?
interval British English, intermission BrE formal and American English a short period of time between the parts of a play or show when the audience can talk or have a drink:
We got a drink in the interval.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

circle
ˈsə:kl
See: come full circle , in a circle or in circles , run circles around also run rings around

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲