circuit

American  

[sur-kit] / ˈsɜr kɪt /

noun

• circuits
  plural

1. an act or instance of going or moving around.

2. a circular journey or one beginning and ending at the same place; a round.

   Synonyms:

   orbit, revolution, tour

3. a roundabout journey or course.

4. a periodical journey from place to place, to perform certain duties, as by judges to hold court, ministers to preach, or salespeople covering a route.

5. the persons making such a journey.

6. the route followed, places visited, or district covered by such a journey.

7. the line going around or bounding any area or object; the distance about an area or object.

   Synonyms:

   compass, boundary, periphery, perimeter, circumference

8. the space within a bounding line; district.

   the circuit of the valley.

   Synonyms:

   field, range, area, compass, region

9. Electricity.

   1. Also called electric circuit. the complete path of an electric current, including the generating apparatus, intervening resistors, or capacitors.

   2. any well-defined segment of a complete circuit.

10. Telecommunications. a means of transmitting communication signals or messages, usually comprising two channels for interactive communication.

11. a number of theaters, nightclubs, etc., controlled by the same owner or manager or visited in turn by the same entertainers or acting companies.

    Synonyms:

    chain

12. a league or association.

    He used to play baseball for the Texas circuit.

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verb (used with object)

• circuits,
  present (3rd person singular)
• circuited,
  past participle,  past
• circuiting
  present participle

1. to go or move around; make the circuit of.

verb (used without object)

• circuits,
  present (3rd person singular)
• circuited,
  past participle,  past
• circuiting
  present participle

1. to go or move in a circuit.

idioms

1. ride circuit, (of a judge) to travel a judicial county or district in order to conduct judicial proceedings.

circuit British  

/ ˈsɜːkɪt /

noun

1. 1. a complete route or course, esp one that is curved or circular or that lies around an object

   2. the area enclosed within such a route

2. the act of following such a route

   we made three circuits of the course

3. 1. a complete path through which an electric current can flow

   2. ( as modifier )

      a circuit diagram

4. 1. a periodical journey around an area, as made by judges, salesmen, etc

   2. the route traversed or places visited on such a journey

   3. the persons making such a journey

5. an administrative division of the Methodist Church comprising a number of neighbouring churches

6. English law one of six areas into which England is divided for the administration of justice

7. a number of theatres, cinemas, etc, under one management or in which the same film is shown or in which a company of performers plays in turn

8. sport

   1. a series of tournaments in which the same players regularly take part

      the international tennis circuit

   2. the contestants who take part in such a series

9. a motor racing track, usually of irregular shape

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verb

1. to make or travel in a circuit around (something)

circuit Scientific  

/ sûr′kĭt /

1. A closed path through which an electric current flows or may flow.

2. ◆ Circuits in which a power source is connected to two or more components (such as light bulbs, or logic gates in a computer circuit), one after the other, are called series circuits. If the circuit is broken, none of the components receives a current. Circuits in which a power source is directly connected to two or more components are called parallel circuits. If a break occurs in the circuit, only the component along whose path the break occurs stops receiving a current.

3. A system of electrically connected parts or devices.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• minicircuit
  noun
• multicircuit
  noun
• subcircuit
  noun
• circuital
  adjective
• multicircuited
  adjective
• noncircuited
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• circuits
  plural

Participles

• circuiting
  present
• circuited
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• circuit
  simple
• circuits
  simple
• have circuited
  perfect
• has circuited
  perfect
• am circuiting
  progressive
• are circuiting
  progressive
• is circuiting
  progressive
• have been circuiting
  perfect progressive
• has been circuiting
  perfect progressive

Past

• circuited
  simple
• had circuited
  perfect
• was circuiting
  progressive
• were circuiting
  progressive
• had been circuiting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will circuit
  simple
• will have circuited
  perfect
• will be circuiting
  progressive
• will have been circuiting
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of circuit

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin circuitus, variant of circumitus circular motion, cycle, equivalent to circu ( m ) i-, variant stem of circu ( m ) īre to go round, circle ( circum- circum- + īre to go) + -tus suffix of v. action; cf. ambit, exit ¹

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Explanation

A circuit is a circular path. It could be the circuit of an electric current or the route of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. If you’re promoting your new book, you’ll be making the talk show circuit. What all these circuits have in common the idea of tracing a circle. A circuit preacher doesn't stay at one church, but instead travels from church to church, following a particular route. Originally US judges traveled from town to town, too, and today’s division of the country into twelve judicial circuits is a holdover from that era — "the Third Circuit," for instance, includes Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

circuit circuits circuited circuiting

In April, Japanese company Mitsubishi Electric said it was in talks with RTX to co-produce the Amraam, including by manufacturing electronic circuit boards as well as participating in the final assembly facility.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026

In the spring of 2024, Antonelli sat in for his first F1 test, behind closed doors, at a circuit in Austria in miserable weather.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026

The Detroit Grand Prix took place on a street circuit from 1982-88.

From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026

An aerial view of the Miami International Autodrome circuit, which goes around the Hard Rock Stadium and has been the home of the Miami Grand Prix since 2022.

From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026

They both helped me really understand the importance of consistency in my gymnastics, and I learned so much about how to carry myself on the elite competition circuit just from being around them.

From "Courage to Soar" by Simone Biles

If this mechanism breaks, it could sever critical circuits, Mokhtari says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026

One year, I took Stoke down to Exmouth, where the lads were put through their paces doing cross-country circuits.

From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026

India and South Korea -- which built circuits specifically to host Formula 1 -- eventually withdrew as their financial losses mounted.

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

Southern California Edison warned Malibu residents that it might shut down power on four major circuits beginning Thursday at midnight, the city of Malibu said in a written statement.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026

First, the electrical systems of all future spacecraft had to be carefully checked for possible short circuits.

From "Flying to the Moon: An Astronaut's Story" by Michael Collins

For centuries, even millennia, people learned songs through the oral tradition, which has been short circuited by the advent of electronic media and inexpensive print communications, in just the last century.

From New York Times ● Sep. 19, 2016

She shows no bitterness about the turn of events that short circuited her diplomatic trajectory.

From Washington Times ● May 31, 2014

Their invention, Roominate, offers girls the experience of building a working circuited dollhouse in pastel colors.

From Time ● Nov. 27, 2013

Wouldn’t that have short- circuited, say, the return of Steve Jobs to Apple?

From BusinessWeek ● Nov. 30, 2011

A plate extends from the top of E2 to the front plate of the casing, to prevent the furnace draught being "short circuited."

From Things To Make by Archibald Williams

Warnings had not been heeded that damp ash conducts electricity, short circuiting power lines and substations.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026

Her thoughts spiraled: “Is he short circuiting? I thought…Is this a stroke?…Has he been drugged?”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 1, 2026

The explosion in Karachi was the result of short circuiting inside a room where the electric system is controlled, according to Nasir Aftab, who is deputy-inspector general for the city’s police.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 29, 2021

Barbare spent much of her time circuiting the provinces, trying to help her feckless husband and then her hapless son salvage catastrophic careers.

From The New Yorker ● Apr. 22, 2019

River piracy—Domestic, the short circuiting of a meander, such as at Coo in the Ardennes; Foreign, such as Shoalhaven River, Australia—stream has captured river.

From Scott's Last Expedition Volume I by Robert Falcon Scott

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Related Words

• course
• district
• lap
• route
• tour

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