in circulation

Idioms  

1. Also, into circulation. In business or social life, especially after a period of absence. For example, After a month in the hospital Bill was eager to get back in circulation. The antonym is out of circulation, as in Since we had twins we've been out of circulation, but we're hoping to get out more often soon. These expressions, dating from the first half of the 1900s, employ circulation in the sense of “making the rounds among people,” a usage dating from the 1600s.

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Example Sentences

The phrase has been in circulation for decades, used most prominently by Ronald Reagan during his presidency.

From Salon

My mom grabs her iPhone—maybe the oldest iPhone still in circulation—and waves her hand for me to get over in front of the plants.

From Literature

Baraa Abu al-Aoun should have been studying at university - but instead he ekes out a living from a table he has set up at the roadside, taking a small sum to help keep cash in circulation.

From BBC

With a pot of glue, a blade and a keen eye, Manal al-Saadani repairs tattered banknotes -- a necessity in the Gaza Strip, where the cash in circulation is wearing out.

From Barron's

And dollar bills that were backed by the gold standard, which were no longer in circulation, had been found mixed in.

From Literature

Related Words

• modern
• ongoing
• present
• prevailing