circulate
Americanverb (used without object)
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to move in a circle or circuit; move or pass through a circuit back to the starting point.
Blood circulates throughout the body.
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to pass from place to place, from person to person, etc..
She circulated among her guests.
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to be distributed or sold, especially over a wide area.
- Synonyms:
- promulgate, lay, disperse
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Library Science. (of books and other materials) to be available for borrowing by patrons of a library for a specified period of time.
verb (used with object)
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to cause to pass from place to place, person to person, etc.; disseminate; distribute.
to circulate a rumor.
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Library Science. to lend (books and other materials) to patrons of a library for a specified period of time.
verb
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to send, go, or pass from place to place or person to person
don't circulate the news
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to distribute or be distributed over a wide area
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to move or cause to move through a circuit, system, etc, returning to the starting point
blood circulates through the body
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to move in a circle
the earth circulates around the sun
Other Word Forms
- circulatable adjective
- circulative adjective
- circulator noun
- circulatory adjective
- intercirculate verb
- noncirculating adjective
- noncirculatory adjective
- precirculate verb
- recirculate verb
- uncirculated adjective
- uncirculating adjective
- uncirculative adjective
- well-circulated adjective
Etymology
Origin of circulate
1425–75 for earlier senses; 1665–75 for current senses; late Middle English < Latin circulātus (past participle of circulārī to gather round one, Medieval Latin circulāre to encircle), equivalent to circul ( us ) circle + -ātus -ate 1
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.
This pattern suggests that shared signals, possibly factors circulating in the bloodstream, help coordinate aging throughout the body.
From Science Daily
Currently, “Abstract Expressionists: The Women,” an ambitious survey circulated by the American Federation of Arts, is at Williamsburg’s Muscarelle Museum of Art.
A team at the GSA studying AI has circulated a report to top agency officials that flags Grok’s safety problems, the people said.
Telecoms have a key role to play in the blossoming of generative artificial intelligence, which requires vast quantities of data to circulate swiftly, reliably and securely over operators' networks.
From Barron's
The two men were pictured giving a thumbs-up in a photo circulating on social media.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
