Circulate

How to spell circulate

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce circulate

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does circulate mean?

1. verbTo move or pass freely around a space, system, or group of people.

Circulate in a sentence

• The host began to circulate among the guests with a tray of drinks.

• Managers asked staff to circulate the new safety policy across every department.

Where does circulate come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word goes back to the Latin circulus, meaning 'a little ring' or 'a small circle', which was itself a diminutive of circus, 'a ring' or 'a circular arena'. From circulus Latin formed the verb circulari, 'to move round in a circle', and the past participle stem of that verb, circulat-, gave English the form we use today. The word entered English in the late 1400s and was at first strongly tied to alchemy and chemistry, describing liquids that were repeatedly distilled so they seemed to travel round and round. By the 1600s it had broadened to mean moving freely through a system or passing from person to person, which is why we speak of blood circulating in the body and news circulating through an office. The same circus root sits inside everyday words like 'circle' and 'circuit', and remembering that ring of origin helps fix the 'circ' opening and the single 'l' before the -ate ending.

How the word is built

• circul- (from Latin circulus: a little ring or circle)
• -ate (verb-forming suffix meaning 'to make or do')