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.
Mr. Spencer said he doesn’t use it at all, although he did circulate his draft among “a group of trusted friends, who I consider better writers than me.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
She said she was in her mid-20s when rumors began to circulate that Brooklyn Avenue would be renamed after Chavez.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 21, 2026
This was partially because news agencies were already operational, and so the same kind of press releases would circulate worldwide, but it also corresponded to a real kind of social demand for information about him.
From Slate • Mar. 2, 2026
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 • Feb. 27, 2026
I remain posted up near the doorway while Katherine and the instructors circulate through the crowd.
From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland
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.
