circle : Idioms & Phrases

• (Mech.), the circle which may be described around a circular spur wheel or gear wheel, touching the crests or tips of the teeth.

Webster 1913

• noun a line of latitude north of the south pole
  

WordNet

• noun a line of latitude near but to the south of the north pole; it marks the northernmost point at which the sun is visible on the northern winter solstice and the southernmost point at which the midnight sun can be seen on the northern summer solstice
  

WordNet

• the diameter of the sphere which is perpendicular to the plane of the circle. Hutton.

Webster 1913

• . See under Azimuth.

Webster 1913

• one of the great circles of the sphere intersecting each other in the zenith and nadir, and cutting the horizon at right angles. Hutton.

Webster 1913

• noun a feat in which an acrobat arches the back from a prone position and bends the knees until the toes touch the head
  

WordNet

• verb move around in a circular motion
  revolve around; circle around.
  
  • The Earth revolves around the Sun

WordNet

• (Astron.), a circle parallel to the horizon, having its pole in the zenith; an almucantar.

Webster 1913

• noun the circle that touches a curve (on the concave side) and whose radius is the radius of curvature
  circle of curvature.
  

WordNet

• . See Osculating circle of a curve (Below).
• . See Osculating circle of a curve, under Circle.

Webster 1913

• . See under Declination.

Webster 1913

• . (a) (Astron.) A great circle perpendicular to the plane of the ecliptic, passing through its poles. (b) (Spherical Projection) A small circle of the sphere whose plane is perpendicular to the axis.

Webster 1913

• at any given place, the boundary of that space around the elevated pole, within which the stars never set. Its distance from the pole is equal to the latitude of the place.

Webster 1913

• at any given place, the boundary of the space around the depressed pole, within which the stars never rise.

Webster 1913

• a circle upon the surface of the sphere, called a great circle when its plane passes through the center of the sphere; in all other cases, a small circle.

Webster 1913

• noun a ring of arteries at the base of the brain
  

WordNet

• verb move around in a circular motion
  revolve around; circle around.
  
  • The Earth revolves around the Sun

WordNet

• lesser circles parallel to the ecliptic, diminishing as they recede from it.

Webster 1913

• noun a chart in which complementary colors (or their names) are arranged on opposite sides of a circle
  color wheel.
  

WordNet

• noun a measuring instrument for measuring the angle of magnetic dip (as from an airplane)
  inclinometer.
  

WordNet

• the apparent circle described by a celestial body in consequence of the earth's rotation.

Webster 1913

• noun a gymnastic exercise performed on the pommel horse when the gymnast (with legs together) swings his legs in a circle while alternating hands on the pommels
  

WordNet

• noun a curved section or tier of seats in a hall or theater or opera house; usually the first tier above the orchestra
  circle.
  
  • they had excellent seats in the dress circle

WordNet

• a gallery in a theater, generally the one containing the prominent and more expensive seats.

Webster 1913

• (Eng. Antiq.), a popular name for certain ancient inclosures formed by rude stones circularly arranged, as at Stonehenge, near Salisbury.

Webster 1913

• noun the great circle on the celestial sphere midway between the celestial poles
  celestial equator; equinoctial line; equinoctial.
  

WordNet

• the circles formed in grassy lawns by certain fungi (as Marasmius Oreades), formerly supposed to be caused by fairies in their midnight dances.

Webster 1913

• noun a ring of fungi marking the periphery of the perennial underground growth of the mycelium
  fairy ring.
  

WordNet

• noun rearmost or uppermost area in the balcony containing the least expensive seats
  upper balcony; peanut gallery; second balcony.
  

WordNet

• a gallery in a theater, usually one containing inexpensive seats.

Webster 1913

• (Astron.), the great circle of the heavens, to which the course of the galaxy most nearly conforms. Herschel.

Webster 1913

• . (Elec.) See under Circuit.

Webster 1913

• (Gearing), the outline of the smallest cross section of a hyperboloid of revolution.

Webster 1913

• noun a gymnastic exercise performed on the horizontal bar by swinging around it with the body fully extended
  

WordNet

• noun a circular line on the surface of a sphere formed by intersecting it with a plane passing through the center
  

WordNet

• a circle the plane of which passes through the center of the sphere.

Webster 1913

• the process or art of conducting a ship on a great circle of the globe or on the shortest arc between two places.

Webster 1913

• (Dialing), the lines on dials which show the hours.
• . See Circles.

Webster 1913

• noun a great circle on the celestial sphere that passes through both celestial poles
  

WordNet

• . (Astron.) (a) Any circle of the sphere passing through the two poles of the equator; esp., one of the circles drawn on an artificial globe through the poles, and dividing the equator into spaces of 15°, or one hour, each. (b) A circle upon an equatorial telescope lying parallel to the plane of the earth's equator, and graduated in hours and subdivisions of hours of right ascension. (c) A small brass circle attached to the north pole of an artificial globe, and divided into twenty-four parts or hours. It is used to mark differences of time in working problems on the globe.

Webster 1913

• adverb without making progress
  
  • the candidates talked in circles

WordNet

• noun an exclusive circle of people with a common purpose
  coterie; camp; ingroup; clique; pack.
  

WordNet

• a series of concentric circles containing the numbers 12 to 75 in eight radii, and having somewhat similar properties to the magic square.

Webster 1913

• (Astron.), an instrument consisting of a telescope attached to a large graduated circle and so mounted that the telescope revolves like the transit instrument in a meridian plane. By it the right ascension and the declination of a star may be measured in a single observation.

Webster 1913

• (Astron.), a graduated circle, in the plane of the meridian, attached permanently to a perpendicular wall; used for measuring arcs of the meridian. See Circle, n., 3.

Webster 1913

• (Geom.), a circle so related to any given triangle as to pass through the three points in which the perpendiculars from the angles of the triangle upon the opposite sides (or the sides produced) meet the sides. It also passes through the three middle points of the sides of the triangle and through the three middle points of those parts of the perpendiculars that are between their common point of meeting and the angles of the triangle. The circle is hence called the nine points ∨ six points circle.

Webster 1913

• (Projection), a circle whose plane is oblique to the axis of the primitive plane.

Webster 1913

• (Opt.), a graduated circle used for the measurement of angles in optical experiments.

Webster 1913

• (Geom.), that circle which cuts three given circles at right angles.

Webster 1913

• noun the circle that touches a curve (on the concave side) and whose radius is the radius of curvature
  circle of curvature.
  

WordNet

• (Geom.), the circle which touches the curve at some point in the curve, and close to the point more nearly coincides with the curve than any other circle. This circle is used as a measure of the curvature of the curve at the point, and hence is called circle of curvature.

Webster 1913

• . (Geom.) See Osculating circle of a curve, under Circle.

Webster 1913

• those circles of the sphere whose planes are parallel to each other.

Webster 1913

• noun a luminous halo parallel to the horizon at the altitude of the sun; caused by ice crystals in the atmosphere
  parhelic ring; solar halo.
  

WordNet

• noun seating at the rear of the main floor (beneath the balconies)
  parterre.
  

WordNet

• . See under Pitch.

Webster 1913

• (Gearing), an ideal line, in a toothed gear or rack, bearing such a relation to a corresponding line in another gear, with which the former works, that the two lines will have a common velocity as in rolling contact; it usually cuts the teeth at about the middle of their height, and, in a circular gear, is a circle concentric with the axis of the gear; the line, or circle, on which the pitch of teeth is measured.

Webster 1913

• noun a line of latitude at the north or south poles
  polar circle.
  

WordNet

• noun a line of latitude at the north or south poles
  polar circle.
  

WordNet

• (Astron. & Geog.), two circles, each at a distance from a pole of the earth equal to the obliquity of the ecliptic, or about 23° 28', the northern called the arctic circle, and the southern the antarctic circle.

Webster 1913

• (Spherical Projection), the circle cut from the sphere to be projected, by the primitive plane.

Webster 1913

• noun a quarter of the circumference of a circle
  quadrant.
  

WordNet

• (Geom.), the straight line perpendicular to the line joining their centers and such that the tangents from any point of it to the two circles shall be equal to each other.

Webster 1913

• an astronomical instrument for measuring angless, like the sextant or Hadley's quadrant, by the reflection of light from two plane mirrors which it carries, and differing from the sextant chiefly in having an entire circle.

Webster 1913

• (Opt.), an instrument provided with a graduated circle for the measurement of refraction.

Webster 1913

• . See the Note under Circle, n., 3.

Webster 1913

• the circle described by the point whose velocity equals the velocity of the ship. J. Bourne.

Webster 1913

• (Geom. & Astron.), a great circle passes through the poles of another great circle and is therefore perpendicular to its plane.

Webster 1913

• . (Geom.) See Nine points circle, under Nine.

Webster 1913

• to confine; to hem in; to keep together; as, to circle bodies in.

Webster 1913

• (Math.), to determine the exact contents of a circle in square measure. The solution of this famous problem is now generally admitted to be impossible.

Webster 1913

• to make a complete circuit. Colloq.

Webster 1913

• noun a road junction at which traffic streams circularly around a central island
  circle; rotary; roundabout.
  
  • the accident blocked all traffic at the rotary

WordNet

• (Astron.), a transit instrument with a graduated circle attached, used for observing the time of transit and the declination at one observation. See Circle, n., 3.

Webster 1913

• noun a great circle on the celestial sphere passing through the zenith and perpendicular to the horizon
  

WordNet

• an azimuth circle.

Webster 1913

• noun one trouble leads to another that aggravates the first
  vicious cycle.
  
• noun an argument that assumes that which is to be proved
  

WordNet

• a continous electrical communication between the two poles of a battery; an arrangement of voltaic elements or couples with proper conductors, by which a continuous current of electricity is established.

Webster 1913

• . See under Circuit.

Webster 1913

• noun a small area at a racecourse where awards are given to the owners of winning horses
  

WordNet