Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of cyclical
Explanation
Though day-to-day weather changes are unpredictable, nature’s seasons can always be counted on to move in cyclical or predictable patterns. Cyclical is used to describe things that are regularly patterned or that occur in regular intervals. The root of cyclical is “cycle” which means movement in a circular fashion, or the circular fashion itself. Planets orbit the sun in cyclical patterns, the moon’s phases are cyclical as well. Some stock brokers say that the market is cyclical, but that may be just a way of telling people to keep investing when it's down.
Vocabulary lists containing cyclical
100 SAT words Beginning with "C"
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Space Science (Astronomy) - Introductory
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Earth and the Solar System - Middle School
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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 cyclical freezing and thawing of soil also brings old shells to the surface, Goldammer said, much as flower beds can seem to produce fresh stones every winter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
When they start shooting a movie together, they begin to understand their connection to this ancient evil, and their place in a cyclical inferno wrought by absent parents and bad weather.
From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026
And memory looked like yesterday’s cyclical trade before AI transformed its supply-and-demand picture.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026
Reformation has tried to position itself outside of other millennial brands, analysts say, but the cyclical nature of the apparel market makes the category a tough sell.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
In spare moments, she still tried to gather caterpillars and record their metamorphoses, continually fascinated by new forms of this cyclical pattern.
From "The Girl Who Drew Butterflies: How Maria Merian's Art Changed Science" by Joyce Sidman
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.
