ENGLISH
REFERENCE

surrounded

v.
B1 Intermediate US //sɝˈaʊndɪd// UK //səɹˈaʊndɪd// sur·round·ed

v. to be all around something or someone on every side. You use this when something is in the middle of a circle or a group.

v. to be present on all sides of something; to encircle or encompass completely. Often used in the passive voice to describe a subject's environment or predicament.


SIMPLE

Tall trees surrounded the small house.

CONTEXTUAL

The police surrounded the building to make sure nobody could leave through the back exits.

COMPLEX

The ancient fortress was surrounded by a deep moat and thick stone walls, making it nearly impossible for any invading army to breach the inner courtyard.

Synonyms
Usage

The verb is transitive and frequently appears in the passive form 'to be surrounded by'.

Pitfall

The house is surrounded from treesThe house is surrounded by treesWhen using the passive voice, the preposition 'by' or 'with' is required, not 'from'.

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