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circumscribe

[ sur-kuhm-skrahyb, sur-kuhm-skrahyb ]
/ ˈsɜr kəmˌskraɪb, ˌsɜr kəmˈskraɪb /
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See synonyms for circumscribe on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object), cir·cum·scribed, cir·cum·scrib·ing.
to draw a line around; encircle: to circumscribe a city on a map.
to enclose within bounds; limit or confine, especially narrowly: Her social activities are circumscribed by school regulations.
to mark off; define; delimit: to circumscribe the area of a science.
Geometry.
  1. to draw (a figure) around another figure so as to touch as many points as possible.
  2. (of a figure) to enclose (another figure) in this manner.
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Origin of circumscribe

1350–1400; Middle English <Latin circumscrībere, equivalent to circum-circum- + scrībere to write

OTHER WORDS FROM circumscribe

Words nearby circumscribe

circumocular, circumpolar, circumradius, circumrotate, circumscissile, circumscribe, circumscribed, circumscribed myxedema, circumscribed scleroderma, circumscript, circumscription
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Words related to circumscribe

delineate, hem in, encircle, bar, outline, trammel, girdle, bound, surround, hamper, restrict, define, restrain, enclose, limit, environ, confine, encompass, demarcate, nail down

How to use circumscribe in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for circumscribe

circumscribe
/ (ˌsɜːkəmˈskraɪb, ˈsɜːkəmˌskraɪb) /
verb (tr)
to restrict within limits
to mark or set the bounds of
to draw a geometric construction around (another construction) so that the two are in contact but do not intersectCompare inscribe (def. 4)
to draw a line round

Derived forms of circumscribe

circumscribable, adjectivecircumscriber, noun

Word Origin for circumscribe

C15: from Latin circumscrībere, from circum- + scrībere to write
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for circumscribe

circumscribe
[ sûr′kəm-skrīb′ ]
To draw a figure around another figure so as to touch as many points as possible. A circle that is circumscribed around a triangle touches it at each of the triangle's three vertices.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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