Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

circumscribe

/ˈsɝ.kəm.skɹaɪb/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: 1.75 in modern English

Syllables: cir-cum-scribe
IPA: /ˈsɝ.kəm.skɹaɪb/

22

Scrabble Score

12

Letters

3

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To draw a line around; to encircle.

verb

To limit narrowly; to restrict.

verb

To draw the smallest circle or higher-dimensional sphere that has (a polyhedron, polygon, etc.) in its interior.

Example Sentences

""Well, I promise you to circumscribe her conquests as much as possible by extending my own," returned Henrietta. "It will be an easy task; for Miss Churchill does not do 'the honours of her eyes.' I often tell her her beauty is quite wasted upon her.""
"It is tempting to speculate about the incentives or compulsions that might explain why anyone would take to the skies in [the] basket [of a balloon]: […]; perhaps to moralise on the oneness or fragility of the planet, or to see humanity for the small and circumscribed thing that it is; […]."

Etymology

From Latin circumscrībō, from circum (“around”) + scrībō (“write”). By surface analysis, circum- + scribe.

Origin

Source language: Latin

Word Breakdown

Root: *(s)kreybʰ-, circumscrībō

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈsɝ.kəm.skɹaɪb/
British English: /ˈsɜː.kəm.skɹaɪb/

Inflected Forms

circumscribes (present, singular) circumscribing (participle, present) circumscribed (participle, past) circumscribed (past)

Derived Forms

circumscribability circumscribable circumscriber

Frequently Paired Words

circumscribed circumscript circumscription

Synonyms

limit confine to

Rhymes With

describe tribe subscribe vibe bribe prescribe scribe unsubscribe ascribe transcribe jibe imbibe

Questions

How do you pronounce circumscribe?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈsɝ.kəm.skɹaɪb/.
What does circumscribe mean?: To draw a line around; to encircle.
Where does circumscribe come from?: It is traced to Latin.

How to pronounce circumscribe

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “circumscribe”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈsɝ.kəm.skɹaɪb/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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