verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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encirclesimple
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encirclessimple
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have encircledperfect
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has encircledperfect
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am encirclingprogressive
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are encirclingprogressive
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is encirclingprogressive
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have been encirclingperfect progressive
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has been encirclingperfect progressive
Past
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encircledsimple
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had encircledperfect
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was encirclingprogressive
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were encirclingprogressive
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had been encirclingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of encircle
Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at en- 1, circle
Explanation
To encircle is to surround, or to make a circle around. On the last night of summer camp, the counselors and campers traditionally encircle the campfire and sing songs. Prisons are encircled by barbed wire fences, and hot, damp pavement encircles most public swimming pools. When you hug your little sister, you encircle her with your arms. If your tomato plants are growing too tall and flopping over, you should encircle them with twine to hold them up. Encircle adds the prefix en-, "make or put in" to circle, from its Latin root circus, or "ring."
Vocabulary lists containing encircle
Florida's B.E.S.T Roots: circ, circum
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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.
See Examples For:
"We are trying to definitively encircle the fire today," regional government spokesperson Nicolas Yernaux told AFP.
From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026
As for the county of Los Angeles, about half of its 4,700-plus square miles are made up of the forests and oceans and deserts that encircle it.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 6, 2026
It already displays two prominent, sweeping arms that encircle a bright central bulge, stretching across about 30,000 light-years.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 3, 2025
They constructed a 35-mile earthen berm around the city in an attempt to encircle its one million residents.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2025
My fingers encircle a blackberry and pluck it from its stem.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
The island is famous for its seaweed-eating sheep, which are mostly confined to the shore by a 13-mile-long drystone wall that encircles the island.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
Since 2019, it has expanded its attacks from northern Burkina Faso and now encircles Ouagadougou, threatening links with neighbouring Ivory Coast, Togo and Mali.
From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2025
This framing device encircles just one remarkable chapter of the wild and colorful life of Miller, who lived so much both before and after the war.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2024
The researchers also showed that by changing the type of polymer that encircles a nanotube, they could engineer new types of semiconducting nanotubes.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 12, 2024
His arm encircles me and guides me back into the Justice Building.
From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
Weeks later, in July 2014, Drapatiy coordinated the safe withdrawal of 260 troops from an area that was encircled and relentlessly shelled for weeks by Russian forces.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
Kolwezi, the closest town to the Kamoa site, is encircled by a dozen giant industrial mines.
From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026
Several hundred city residents, social justice activists, and dozens of Newark police officers encircled the DHS site where Baraka was being held.
From Salon ● May 30, 2026
The island identified beneath Karnak is the only known example of such high ground encircled by water in the region.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 4, 2026
The necklace floated from Monsoon’s hands and gently encircled Aru’s neck.
From "Aru Shah and the End of Time" by Roshani Chokshi
Colombia’s Pacific region around the quake’s epicenter lies in the “Ring of Fire,” the line of seismic faults encircling the Pacific Ocean where most of the world’s earthquakes occur.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
She pointed out one pup with a piece of trash encircling its neck.
From Slate ● May 27, 2026
The new English coast path links with the Wales Coast Path - an 870-mile route encircling the Welsh coastline.
From BBC ● Mar. 18, 2026
When President Trump was asked about the China encircling Taiwan at a news conference on Monday, he shrugged.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 31, 2025
In the large mirror on the wall, the red rings encircling my eyes give me away, but Hélène doesn't mention it.
From "What the Night Sings" by Vesper Stamper
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
