Dictionary.com

surround

[ suh-round ]
/ səĖˆraŹŠnd /
Save This Word!
See synonyms for: surround / surrounded / surrounding / surrounds on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object)
to enclose on all sides; encompass: She was surrounded by reporters.
to form an enclosure around; encircle: A stone wall surrounds the estate.
to enclose (a body of troops, a fort or town, etc.) so as to cut off communication or retreat.
noun
something that surrounds, as the area, border, etc., around an object or central space: a tile surround for the shower stall.
environment or setting: The designer created a Persian surround for the new restaurant.
Hunting.
  1. a means of hunting in which wild animals are encircled and chased into a special spot that makes their escape impossible.
  2. the act of hunting by this means.
  3. the location encircled by hunters using this means.
QUIZ
WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?
Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!
Question 1 of 7
Fill in the blank: I canā€™t figure out _____ gave me this gift.
who
whom
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of surround

1400ā€“50; late Middle English surounden to inundate, submerge <Anglo-French surounder,Middle French s(o)ronder<Late Latin superundāre to overflow, equivalent to Latin super-super- + undāre to flood, derivative of unda wave (see undulate); current spelling by analysis as sur-1 + round1 (v.)

OTHER WORDS FROM surround

preĀ·surĀ·round, verb (used with object)unĀ·surĀ·roundĀ·ed, adjective

Words nearby surround

surreptitiously, surrey, surrogacy, surrogate, surrogate mother, surround, surrounding, surroundings, surround sound, surround theater, sur-royal
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Ā© Random House, Inc. 2022

Words related to surround

besiege, circle, envelop, hem in, inundate, ring, beleaguer, beset, blockade, border, bound, circumscribe, circumvent, compass, confine, edge, enclave, encompass, environ, fringe

How to use surround in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for surround

surround
/ (səĖˆraŹŠnd) /
verb (tr)
to encircle or enclose or cause to be encircled or enclosed
to deploy forces on all sides of (a place or military formation), so preventing access or retreat
to exist aroundI dislike the people who surround her
noun
mainly British a border, esp the area of uncovered floor between the walls of a room and the carpet or around an opening or panel
mainly US
  1. a method of capturing wild beasts by encircling the area in which they are believed to be
  2. the area so encircled

Derived forms of surround

surrounding, adjective

Word Origin for surround

C15 surrounden to overflow, from Old French suronder, from Late Latin superundāre, from Latin super- + undāre to abound, from unda a wave
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition Ā© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 Ā© HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
FEEDBACK