cir·cuit
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Definition of circuit
(Entry 1 of 2)
1a
: a usually circular line encompassing an area
a swamp about 10 miles in circuit
b
: the space enclosed within such a line
the circuit of the duke's land
2a
: a course around a periphery
the periodic circuit of the Earth around the Sun
b
: a circuitous or indirect route
The damaged bridge forced him to take a long circuit to his destination.
3a
: a regular tour (as by a traveling judge or preacher) around an assigned district or territory
The preacher ministered to each congregation in his circuit.
b
: the route traveled
His circuit took him to many towns in the county.
c
: a group of church congregations ministered to by one pastor
4a
: the complete path of an electric current including usually the source of electric energy
b
: an assemblage of electronic elements : hookup
c
: a two-way communication path between points (as in a computer)
d
: a neuronal pathway of the brain along which electrical and chemical signals travel
5a
: an association of similar groups : league
b
: a number or series of public outlets (such as theaters, radio shows, or arenas) offering the same kind of presentation
He loved competing on the rodeo circuit. She rose through the theater circuit to become a big-time entertainer.
c
: a number of similar social gatherings
the cocktail circuit
circuit
verb
circuited;
circuiting;
circuits
Definition of circuit (Entry 2 of 2)
: to make a circuit about
a route that circuits the Back Bay section of the city
: to make a circuit
Potential buyers circuited around the boatyard.
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Other Words from circuit
Noun
circuital
\ ˈsər-kə-tᵊl
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adjective
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adjective
Synonyms for circuit
Synonyms: Verb
circle, circumnavigate, circumvent, compass, encircle, girdle, orbit, ring, round
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Examples of circuit in a Sentence
Noun
It takes a year for the Earth to make one circuit around the sun.Verb
after circuiting the exterior of the church, the procession headed insideRecent Examples on the Web: Noun
The two regions had previously been outside of Georgia’s tourism circuit. — Natasha Frost, Quartzy, "What’s behind a stratospheric tourism boom in the tiny European nation of Georgia," 31 Aug. 2019 Alongside Bass Coast, Shambhala is one of the northern strongholds of the fabled West Coast transformational festival circuit, which runs roughly from Southern California up the coast, across the Nevada border to Burning Man and then up to here. — Katie Bain, Billboard, "In Its 22nd Year of 'Getting Weird in the Woods,' Shambhala Music Festival Demonstrates Why It's Still Worth the Effort," 12 Aug. 2019 While stars frequently make the rounds of the late night circuit to promote their various projects, Ferrell apparently decided to do it all in one night. — Melissa Locker, Time, "Here Are the Funniest Moments From Ron Burgundy's Late Night Takeover From 'iPhone Glasses' for Teens to Impressions," 9 Aug. 2019 At the Peach Jam, part of the EYBL circuit, Springs averaged 13 points and 13 rebounds. — Dom Amore, courant.com, "Dan Hurley: Newest UConn recruit Richie Springs a 'quality player who can help us compete for championships’," 8 Aug. 2019 Many of the titles premiering as part of the circuit that includes Telluride, Venice, Toronto, New York and L.A.’s AFI Fest hope to gain awards season traction. — Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, "Toronto Film Festival lineup announced: ‘Joker,’ ‘Ford v Ferrari,’ Meryl Streep and more," 23 July 2019 The upcoming Paddle Fit Workout provides skilled kayakers a preview of the Wendy Park race circuit. — cleveland.com, "Whiskey Island Paddlefest helps highlight Cleveland Metroparks water sports programming," 14 July 2019 Grande has a preternatural gift for impersonating other singers and actresses—a talent that has made her a surprise darling of the nighttime-television circuit. — Rob Haskell, Vogue, "Ariana Grande on Grief and Growing Up," 9 July 2019 Those who aren’t vandalizing are busy concealing it, lofting a movable roof of umbrellas to shield demonstrators from Hong Kong’s ubiquitous closed-circuit security cameras. — Matt Bradley, NBC News, "As Hong Kong protests turn violent, one man fights to preserve middle ground," 24 Aug. 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
Physical fatigue leads to mental fatigue, short-circuiting the mind’s decision-making capacity. — Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, "San Diego State’s Matt Mitchell spending summer slimming down," 22 July 2019 Double-play grounders quickly short-circuited the first and second. — Todd Rosiak, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Padres 4, Brewers 1: Rookie pitcher short-circuits offense once again," 19 June 2019 When the second Bush administration cooked up a case and a plan for war with Iraq, much of the cooking was done within the Pentagon, under the eye of Secretary Donald Rumsfeld; the results of that short-circuiting were bad enough. — Adam Weinstein, The New Republic, "Who Is Actually Running the U.S. Military’s Iran Efforts?," 18 June 2019 She's dragged the whole country into this and short-circuited a process the rest of us are vested in and not bothered to explain herself? — Fox News, "New evidence of political bias at Google; gender politics at play in Michigan Senate race," 21 Sep. 2018 As commander in chief, Trump immediately complicated the military’s case against Golsteyn, raising questions of undue command influence, as well as the possibility that the prosecution is bound to be short-circuited by a pardon. — Taimoor Shah, The Seattle Times, "Trump to ‘review’ case of Green Beret accused of murdering Afghan," 16 Dec. 2018 The evening ends with similar impact, as the full company’s arcing paths of running dancers circuit the stage, at times suggesting a whirlpool, before looping out as a whiplash of punctuation. — Robert Greskovic, WSJ, "‘The Six Brandenburg Concertos’ Review: Falling Short of Bach," 5 Oct. 2018 And then literally short-circuiting an acquisition. — Eric Johnson, Recode, "Why Snap will get acquired before 2020, probably by Amazon," 28 Sep. 2018 Walker followed with a walk, but Clevinger got Miguel Andujar to ground into a double play and struck out Tyler Austin, short-circuiting the only threat against him until the eighth. — Pete Caldera, USA TODAY, "Gleyber Torres hits walk-off three-run homer to help Yankees sweep Indians," 6 May 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'circuit.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for circuit
circuit
noun
English Language Learners Definition of circuit
: a series of performances, sports events, lectures, etc., that are held or done at many different places