Word
circulate
Phoneticscir·cu·late, stress on the first syllable
US/ˈsɝkjəˌɫeɪt/
UK/sˈɜːkjʊlˌeɪt/
Definitions
01move through a system
B2 · Upper Intermediate
v. to move continuously through a closed system, like blood in your body or air in a room.
v. to move through a circuit or closed system and return to the starting point.
“The fan helps the cool air circulate through the entire office.”
“In a healthy cardiovascular system, blood must circulate efficiently to deliver oxygen to the extremities and return to the heart.”
Antonyms
02spread information
B2 · Upper Intermediate
v. to pass something, like a document or a story, from one person to another.
v. to disseminate information, documents, or rumours within a group or to the public.
“They will circulate the meeting notes to everyone by tomorrow morning.”
“The internal memo began to circulate among the staff long before the management made an official announcement regarding the merger.”
Synonyms
03repeating decimals
C2 · Proficiency Mathematics Technical
v. when a group of numbers at the end of a decimal repeats forever.
v. to recur or repeat infinitely, specifically referring to a digit or sequence of digits in a decimal fraction.
“In the fraction one-third, the digit three will circulate forever as a decimal.”
“The student noted that the decimal representation of one-seventh contains six digits that circulate in a fixed sequence.”
Antonyms
Collocations
Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “circulate” in context.
Verb
01. circulate among staff
“A petition regarding the new office hours is currently circulating among staff members.”
verb + prep + noun
02. circulate the memo
“The manager asked her assistant to circulate the memo to all department heads immediately.”
verb + noun
03. circulate widely
“Rumors about the company's potential bankruptcy began to circulate widely on social media.”
verb + adv
04. freely circulate
“In a healthy democracy, information must freely circulate without government interference.”
adv + verb
Noun
05. air circulates
“The high ceilings and large windows ensure that fresh air circulates throughout the building.”
noun + verb
06. blood circulates
“Regular exercise helps ensure that blood circulates efficiently to all your extremities.”
noun + verb
Usage
When used transitively, it requires a direct object (e.g., 'circulate the document').
Real-World Examples
“Instead, you can use the fan to circulate air around the room.” “But those strategies may need to be reconsidered if mammalian metabolism, rather than microbes, is responsible for much of what circulates in the body.” Etymology
Borrowed from Late Latin circulātus, perfect passive participle of Late Latin circulō (“to make circular, encircle”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), a later collateral form of circulor (“form a circle (of men) around oneself”), from circulus (“a circle”). See also Middle English circulat(e) (“(alchemy) changed by continuous distillation in a closed vessel”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
VERB
ADJECTIVE
Domain
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.C1 AdvancedIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.7.0–8.0TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 5.0–5.595–113TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.945–990
- Frequency
- Occasional
- Level
- C1 · AdvancedOxford
- Updated
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