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Synonyms

circa

American  
[sur-kuh] / ˈsɜr kə /

preposition

  1. about: used especially in approximate dates: ca, ca., c., c, cir., circ.

    The Venerable Bede was born circa 673.


circa British  
/ ˈsɜːkə /

preposition

  1. Abbreviation: c..   ca..  (used with a date) at the approximate time of

    circa 1182 bc.

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of circa

First recorded in 1860–65; from Latin: “around, about,” akin to circus circus

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

That’s right, the so-called rock-n-roll comfort food king — but more accurately the extremely unhealthy-looking, ear-splitting maniac who thinks he’s fronting a college garage band circa 1995.

From Salon

Violinist Philip Setzer offers the origin story, circa 1976: Going to return some library books before heading home from Juilliard for the summer, he ran into fellow violin student Eugene Drucker, who asked him if he’d like to be in a quartet.

From The Wall Street Journal

I’m old enough to remember when the King was on tour—my older brother and my father attended one of his shows, circa 1975, at the Springfield Civic Center in Massachusetts.

From The Wall Street Journal

The effort to recreate the atmosphere of Vernon circa 2003 is something of a cheat—Tom, Will and Tami all tell their stories in present-day interviews, in the present tense: It’s as if nothing was ever revealed or resolved about the boys in the intervening years, or before the series is even over.

From The Wall Street Journal

The authors note: "New analysis of Scandinavia's oldest plank boat brings us a step closer to solving the 100-year-old mystery of the ancient boat's origins. Using cutting-edge scientific methods, researchers have zeroed in on the Baltic Sea Region as the most likely source for the circa 2,400-year-old boat, while also discovering a fingerprint left by an ancient seafarer in the tar used to waterproof the vessel."

From Science Daily