circulate
verb (used without object)
to move in a circle or circuit; move or pass through a circuit back to the starting point.
had been circulating
-
past perfect progressiveof circulate.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
For weeks, reports warning of a "bloodbath", external at Microsoft's video game studios had been circulating after the division's new chief executive, Asha Sharma, released a memo saying she planned to "reset the business", external.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
In 2020, SARS-CoV-2 was a novel virus that had been circulating for weeks before it became a global concern.
From MarketWatch ● May 7, 2026
The findings also show that the mosaic incorporates decorative motifs that had been circulating around the Mediterranean for centuries.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 13, 2026
Reports had been circulating for days that the agency embroiled in an often brutal immigration crackdown in the United States could be involved in US security measures for the February 6-22 Games in northern Italy.
From Barron's ● Jan. 27, 2026
To be fair, Hucbald merely experimented with this concept rather than invented it; it had been circulating in musical theories since antiquity, as indeed it had in Indian and Chinese musical systems.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
