environ

¹ American  

[en-vahy-ruhn, -vahy-ern] / ɛnˈvaɪ rən, -ˈvaɪ ərn /

verb (used with object)

1. to form a circle or ring round; surround; envelop.

   a house environed by pleasant grounds; to be environed by bad influences.

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environ. ² American  

abbreviation

1. environment.

2. environmental.

3. environmentalism.

4. environmentalist.

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environ British  

/ ɪnˈvaɪrən /

verb

1. (tr) to encircle or surround

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Other Word Forms

• unenvironed adjective

Etymology

Origin of environ

1300–50; Middle English envirounen < Old French environner, derivative of environ around ( en en- ¹ + viron a circle; vir ( er ) to turn, veer ¹ + -on noun suffix)

Example Sentences

The union said the media workers were detained by Venezuelan security forces at the National Assembly and its environs, and in the neighbourhood of Altamira - all in the capital, Caracas.

From BBC

By the 1960s, two enormous developments had taken place in Korea and its environs.

From Literature

“Don’t be caught here after dark,” said the jittery cop, who brandished an assault rifle as he scanned the environs.

From Los Angeles Times

Wealthier often means having a nicer apartment, but an apartment all the same, existing in the same environs as those in a different price range.

From Los Angeles Times

The American remake of “The Office” transformed the blank environs of an office supplies wholesaler into an adorable terrarium.

From Salon