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
Derived Forms
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uncirculatingadjective
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uncirculativeadjective
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recirculateverb
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noncirculatingadjective
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noncirculatoryadjective
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circulatoryadjective
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intercirculateverb
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uncirculatedadjective
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circulatornoun
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precirculateverb
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well-circulatedadjective
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circulativeadjective
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circulatableadjective
Conjugated Forms
Present
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has circulatedperfect 3rd person singular
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have circulatedperfect
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am circulatingprogressive 1st person singular
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circulatessingular 3rd person
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have been circulatingperfect progressive
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are circulatingprogressive
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circulatingparticiple
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is circulatingprogressive 3rd person singular
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has been circulatingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
Past
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had circulatedperfect
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was circulatingprogressive singular
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were circulatingprogressive plural
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circulatedparticiple
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had been circulatingperfect progressive
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circulatedsimple
Future
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
Explanation
To circulate is to move continuously in a specific circuit, often in a circle. A ceiling fan circulates cool air around the room on a warm day. Blood circulates through your body, pumped from your heart through veins and arteries — your circulatory system — and delivering oxygen to your tissues. This system is closed, meaning the blood stays in your body, bringing oxygenated blood back to your heart. People circulate when they move around a room at a party, chatting with different people, and rumors circulate when they're passed in a circle, from person to person. Circulate comes from the Latin circulare, "to form a circle."
Vocabulary lists containing circulate
"Of Plymouth Plantation," Vocabulary from the historical account
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"Of Plymouth Plantation" by William Bradford
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Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom
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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.
The addition of AI allowed the group to circulate hundreds of website templates.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
“I had so much respect for her at the beginning,” Paige Holland-Thielen, one of the fired employees who helped circulate the letter, told the New York Times in 2022.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 11, 2026
At the same time, many other viruses continue to circulate in animals and could potentially cross into humans, although it is impossible to predict which virus might emerge next or when.
From Science Daily • Jun. 5, 2026
Despite a surge in funding at the end to circulate his countermessaging, Roy lost to Middleton by 10 points Tuesday night.
From Salon • May 29, 2026
He felt as though his blood and spirit had both ceased to circulate, and the breath in his lungs, too.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
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.
