circle 
circle. 1 1 . The English equivalent of the name 
given in some countries, as in Germany, to cer- 
tain administrative divisions. 12. In astron. 
and {/cod., a piece of metal or glass with lines 
1007 
circuit 
l.itt.i niton equal parts, then the TOntlnued product of the circled (ser'kld), (I. [< cirrlr, n.. + -/2.] 1. 
(feUocnof 1| fro,,, the,, points so obtain. ,1 kocnul t,, J- ,i. lvilll , ,,. tta & o 
1' f: 
r"), and the continued product of the distances of 
Tom the middle points of the n arcs is R" + r". De 
Molvre's property of the circle (named from the dis- 
engraved upon it so as to form graduations di- eoverer, the Franco-English mathematician Abraham de 
"" lvrp '"-"* a. fc- i ' 
viding the circumference of a circle into equal 
parts ; hence, any instrument of which such a 
graduated circle forms the part that is most 
important or most difficult to make. 13. A 
small shuttle made in the form of a horseshoe, 
and moving in a circular path, it is a French 
improvement .,n the simple swivel, and is used in tissue 
weaving to form figures on the surface of a fabric. 
The small shuttles culled oinlH are an elaborate sub- 
stitute for the simple swivel, over which they have certain 
advantages. A. liarlotc, Weaving, p. 184. 
Addendum-circle, see inideiuluin. Altitude and 
azimuth Circle, an altu/imuth ; a telescope moving upon 
a vertical and a huri/.i>ntul axis, both beinu provided with 
circles. --Antarctic circle, arctic circle. See the ad 
jcctivcs. -Argument In a circle, see def. 10, above. 
Auxiliary circle. See ,,.r,v,',i,-,/. Azimuth circles, 
see (Kiiiinili. -Bind circle, see /;//. Brocard circle 
(named from the discoverer, the French inatliemutieian 
i 'uptuin II. Krocurd), a circle passing throng h the s.Hillnc 
dian point and eirenmeenter of any triangle, mid through 
live other points, two of which are each the Intersection of 
three lines from the vertices of the triangle parallel to the 
Mdes of one of the triangles inscribed in the given triangle 
and in the Tucker circle, while the other three points are 
each the intersection of two such lines (one parallel to one 
inscribed triangle, and the other to the other) with one of 
Molvre, 1687-1784), tile theorem that. If the circumfer- 
ence of a circle of radius H is divided into n equal parts, 
and P be any point at a distance r from the center c, 
then the continued product of the squares of the distances 
of P from the points on the circumference Is K 
Jiiiving the form of a circle; circular; round. 
ii, swear not by the moon the inconstant moon. 
That monthly changes in her circled orb. 
Shak., R. and J., II. _. 
Like a cat's splendid circled eyes. 
A. C. 
2. Ill her., surrounded by rays of light forming 
a sort of halo. 
2r"R"co3 nfl + if 1 , 'where* Is the angle between I Vau.lt lie Circle-iron (ser'kl-i'ern), H. 1. A hollow jiuncli 
for cutting circular blanks, wafers, etc. 2. 
as seen in a telescope under favorable circumstance*. 
Diffusion circles. See diffunum. - Directing circle. 
tersection of two tangents to a conic cutting each other at 
- 
/.'. //. 
circler 
the fore 
liody. 
circle + - crl; in 
lersecuon ot two tangents to a conic cutting eacliotlier ut ., 1 i TT i - * 
rightangles.-Dlurnalclrcle,acircledescribedb y astar 2 ' a translation of Horace's senator 
or other point in the heavens, In its apparent diurnal revo- 
lution about the earth, or, In reality, in the rotation of the 
earth upon its axis. -Druidlcal circles. See ,//-I,/,//C,K. 
Fairy circle, see .tain/.- Galactic circle, see<witar- 
'ic. Great circle, a circle on a sphere the plane of which 
pusses through the center of thesphere. Horary circle, 
or hour-circle, (n) In artificial globes, a small brass circle 
lived to the north pole, divided into 24 parts of 16 each, 
corresponding to the 24 hours of the day, and furnished 
see cyclic and circular, a., 5.] 1. One who cir- 
cles or goes around anything. 
Neptune, circlfr of the earth. Chapman, Iliad, xiil. 42. 
2f. A cyclic poet. See cyclic and circular, 5. 
Nor so begin, as did that circler lat* : 
I sing a noble war and Priam's fate. 
B. Jonton, Art of Poetry- 
with an Index to point them out (M A fine snowing the circle-reading (ser'kl-re'ding), . The reading 
on a sun-dial. c)\ circle of declination : referred of a graduated circle in a mathematical instru- 
ment. 
to as the twn-hmtr circle, etc., especially as the six-hour 
circle. Knights of the Golden Circle. See knight. 
Mural Circle, a transit-circle attached to a wall instead of 
being mounted between two piers. Nine-point circle, 
The mean of the results from the four microscopes Is 
called the circle-reading. Xewcomb, Astronomy, p. \M. 
the three lines through the syinniuilian point parallel to the a circle drawn through the middle points of the sides of a circle-Squarer (ser'kl-skwar'er), H. A person 
sides of the original triangle. The Brocard circle Is concen- triangle, the feet of the perpendiculars let fall on the u- jT**, _-]j t . -,. ! 
>ide< of the original triangle. The Brocard circle is concen- 
tric with the Tucker circle. Also called seven-point circle. 
- Circle In definition (eireulia in definiendo), a fault of 
a definition consisting in introducing a word or concep- 
tion which can be understood only when the word or con- 
ception to be defined is understood. Circle Of aberra- 
tion. BwokwroMm, -Circle of altitude. Same as at- 
inncantar. Circle of Apis, a period of 25 years used in 
ancient Egypt in i oniiection with the worship of Osiris. 
Circle of convergence. See convergence. Circle of 
curvature, the oscillating circle at any point of a curve. 
Circle of declination, a great circle the plane of 
which is perpendicular to the equator. Circle Of dissi- 
pation. See dinnipation. Circle of glory, in /,., a 
sort of crown made by rays, leaving a circular open space 
in the middle. Circle of higher order, a curve which 
passes more than twice through the circular points at in- 
finity. Circle of inversion. See inversion. Circle of 
keys, in ,/iwxiV. an arrangement of keys or tonalities in 
the order of their closest relationship that is, each key- 
note being the dominant (fifth) or subdominant (fourth) 
. perpei 
sides from the vertices, and the middle points of the Ii 
from the common intersection of these perpendiculars to 
the vertices. Oblique circle. See oUiq ue.On the cir- 
cle, In com., a phrase used of bills or similar obligations 
maturing or successively falling due in the course of busi- 
ness. [Eng.] Osculating circle, a circle having a higher 
order of contact with a curve at a given point than any 
other circle, and passing through at least three consecu- 
tive points of_ the curve. See osculation. Polar circle, circlet 
.., A 
who devotes himself to attempts to solve one 
of the two impossible problems of squaring the 
circle, namely: 1st, by means of a ruler and 
compasses only to construct a square of the 
same area as a given circle ; 2d, to state in ex- 
act arithraeticarterms the ratio' of the circum- 
ference to the diameter. 
+ dim. -et.~\ 1. 
principle of the sextant, but carrying two verniers. Re- 
peating circle, an instrument so arranged that succes- 
sive measures of the same angle are mechanically added 
together upon a graduated circle : a mode of construction 
formerly much employed with a view of eliminating the 
errors of graduation. Secondary circle, a great circle of 
a sphere perpendicular to another regarded as primary. 
Seven-point Circle. Same as Brocard circle (which see, 
above). To square the circle. See circlc-tqvarcr. 
Tucker circle (named from the discoverer, an English 
mathematician, Robert Tucker), the circle through the 
six points where the sides of any triangle are cut by paral- 
lels to the other sides through the symmedian point 
Vanishing circle, a great circle of the heavens in which 
a number of parallel planes meet or appear to meet.-- circlewlse (ser'kl-wiz), adv. 
Vertical circle, an instrument used in geodesy, consist- r n o ,.;,.,.],. 
ing of a theodolite provided with a very accurate circle 
attached to its horizontal axis, for the purpose of measur- 
ing angular elevations. Vicious circle, in logic, an ar- 
gumentation In a circle. See def. 10, above. 
circle (ser'kl). v. ; pret. and pp. circled, ppr. circline (ser ' klin), n. 
circling. [< ME. cerclen, < OF. cercler = Pr. 
celclar = Sp. Pg. circular = It. circolare, also eer- 
or ar- 
ticle of dress, especially for the head ; a chap- 
let ; a head-band. 
Her falre lockes in rich circlet be enrold. 
Spenser, F. y., III. v. 5. 
Certain Ladies or Countesses, with plain circlet* of gold, 
without flowers. Shat., Hen. VIII., Iv. 1. 
2. An orb or a disk-shaped body. 
Till Hesperus displayed 
His golden circlet In the western shade. 
Pope, Odyssey. 
3. A circular piece of wood put under a dish 
at table. [Prqv. Eng.] 
[< circle + -tcise.] 
Circleicise sit they, with bound locks 
And foreheads garlanded. 
D. O. Roiietti, The Blessed Damozel. 
[< circle + -ine 1 .] A 
broad sash used to confine a cassock at the 
waist : more commonly called a cincture. 
A ruffian; a 
F is the subdominant of C ; B (5 is the subdominant of F : etc. G is 
the dominant of C : D Is the dominant of G ; etc. 
of the one before it The circle is perfect in the tempered 
scale of the pianoforte, but not strictly so in theoretical 
acoustics. The theoretical error, 8 jJMJ, ia called a Pytha 
i/oreaii comma, and is approximately represented as JJJ. 
Circle of latitude, (a) In astron., agreatcircle perpen- 
dicular to the plane of the ecliptic. Upon such circles 
celestial latitudes are measured. (&) In geoa., a small cir- 
cle the plane of which is perpendicular to the axis of the 
earth ; a circle of the globe parallel to the equator : more 
usually called a parallel of latitude. Circle of least 
confusion. See confmwn. circle of perpetual appa- 
rition. See apparition. Circle of perpetual occulta- 
tlon. See occultation. Circle Of the empire, an ad- 
ministrative division of the Roman German Empire. 
Circle of the sphere, a circle described on the sphere of 
the earth or the heavens. The equator, the ecliptic, the 
meridians, and the parallels of latitude are all circles of 
the sphere. A great circle of the sphere is one the plane 
of which passes through the center of the earth as the 
equator. Circle of Ulloa, a luminous ring or white rain- 
IK>W sometimes appearing in alpine regions opposite the 
sun during foggy weather. Circle of Willis, the circle of 
arteries at the base of the brain formed by the posterior 
cerebral, the posterior communicating, the internal ca- 
rotid, the anterior cerebral, and the anterior communicat- 
ing arteries. -Circle parade, or the parade of circle, 
in fmcing, a method of parrying by wheeling the foil close- 
ly ami rapidly round from right to left, to throw off the 
adversary's weapon from the center of attack. Rolando 
(ed. Korsyth). Coaxial circles, a system of circles hav- 
ing one line of centers and one radical axis. Cotes's 
properties of the circle (named from the discoverer, 
the Kii'ilisli mathematician Roger Cotes, 1682-1716X the 
two theorems that, given a circle of radius R and a point 
r- = Hp. 
chime, = G. zirkeln = Sw. cirkla = Dan. cirkle, circling-boyt (ser'kling-boi), n. 
< LL. circulare, make circular, encircle, < L. cir- roaring blade ; a bully. 
culus, circle: see circle, .] I. trans. 1. To 
encircle ; encompass ; surround ; inclose. 
Where should I stay ? To what end should I hope y 
Ami not circled round with misery ? 
Fletcher (and another), Sea Voyage, I. 1. 
We may find fault with the rich valleys of Thasus, be- 
cause they are circled by sharp mountains. 
Jer. Taylor, Works (ed. 1836), I. 439. 
Circled with the glow Elysian 
Of thine exulting vision. Lowell, To the Future. 
2. To move around; revolve around. [Rare.] circondario (It. pron. . cher-kon-dS're-o), . [It.. 
< ctrcondare = Sp. circundar = Pg. eireunutar, 
Drake s old ship at Deptford may sooner circle the world < L . tfrcumdare, surround, inclose, < circum, 
One Val Cutting that helps Jordan to roar, a circlina- 
boy. B. Jonson, Bartholomew Fair, iv. '2. 
Those lawless ruffians, who, to the disgrace of the city, 
under the various names of Mohawks, Roarers, Circlin;/- 
koys, Twibills, Blades, Tityre-tu's, Oatmeals, etc., infested 
the streets almost with impunity, from the days of Eliza- 
beth down to the beginning of the last century. 
Dyce, in Ford's Sun's Darling, I. 1. 
circly (ser'kli), o. [< circle + -#l.] Having 
the form of a circle. Huloet. [Rare.] 
again. B. Jonson, Every Man in his Humour, i. 2. 
3. To make to move in a circle or to revolve. 
The acrobat went about to market and fair, circling 
knives and balls adroitly through his hands. 
Welsh, English Literature, I. 70. 
To Circle In, to confine ; keep together by encircling or 
inclosing. Sir K. Diyby. 
II. intrans. 1. To move in a round or circle ; 
circulate ; revolve or turn circularly. 
Full well the busy whisper circling round 
Conveyed the dismal tidings when he frowned. 
Goldsmith, Deserted Village, 1. 203. 
Each circling wheel a wreath of flowers entwines. CirCOpOrUS (ser-kop'6-rus), (i. [NL., < L. 'circus 
Dr. E. Da-nrin, Botanic Garden. (Gr . K ip KOf ), a circle, '+ porus (Gr. v6pnf), a pas- 
sage.] The typical genus of tripyleans of the 
f mmm family Circoporid(e. 
2. To form a circle ;"ass'ume"or""have"thrfom circovarian (ser-ko-ya'ri-an), a. [< L. orriw. 
of a circle. a circle, + NL.orartMm, ovary.] Surrounding 
around, + dare, put.] In Italy, a district; a 
subdivision of a province. 
Faenza, a city of Italy, at the head of a circondario In 
the province of Ravenna. Encyc. Brit., VIII. 84. 
Circoporidae (ser-ko-por'i-de) ; n. pi. [NL., < 
Circoporus + -idte.j A family of tripyleaus 
with a fenestrated shell which is spherical, 
subspherical, or polyhedric in shape, sometimes 
the shell is composed of reticulated plates ; it always has 
one large principal opening and several detached porous 
areas, and usually hollow radial spicules. Leading gen- 
era are Circoporus, Porotte.phamis, and Paroipatkit. 
Her mate . . . with short uneasy sweeps 
Circlet above his eyry. 
3f. Arnold, Sohrab and Rustiim. 
P at a distance r froinThe eenter"c,"if',"s"tarfing"wTth"the ClTCle-CUtter (ser'kl-kut'er), . A tool used 
intei <ei lion of PC with the circumference, we divide the by opticians to out circles in thin glass. 
Hakhiyt's Voyages, I. 479. .. 
Impenetrable, impaled with circling fire. dTCUit (ser'kit), . [< ME. circuit, < OF. cir- 
MUton, P. L., il. 647. cuit, F. circuit = Pr. circuit = Sp. circuito = 
Pg. It. circuito, < L. circuitus, a going round, < 
circuire or circumire, pp. circuitus, go around, 
< circum, around (see circum-), + ire = Gr. 
ievai = Skt. / i, go: see go.] 1. The act of 
Peers who circled round the king. 
Scott, L. of the L., v. 24. 
