in circulation

Idioms  

1. Also, into circulation. In business or social life, especially after a period of absence. For example, After a month in the hospital Bill was eager to get back in circulation. The antonym is out of circulation, as in Since we had twins we've been out of circulation, but we're hoping to get out more often soon. These expressions, dating from the first half of the 1900s, employ circulation in the sense of “making the rounds among people,” a usage dating from the 1600s.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

in circulation

Election law expert Fred Woocher said that the law allows the ballot measure summary to be different than the description of the measure in circulation.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

After all, the value of physical U.S. currency in circulation today stands at over US$2.46 trillion, an all-time high.

From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026

Morgan Stanley estimated that 1.3 billion iPhones in circulation don’t have the necessary hardware to run the updated Siri.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 9, 2026

They remain legal tender but not in circulation, as they are largely kept by private currency collectors.

From BBC ● May 28, 2026

Walkmans had started appearing at Hailsham since the previous year’s Sales and by that summer there were at least six of them in circulation.

From "Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro

Related Words

• modern
• ongoing
• present
• prevailing