verb
Other Word Forms
- encirclement noun
- encircling adjective
- unencircled adjective
Etymology
Origin of encircle
Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at en- 1, circle
Explanation
To encircle is to surround, or to make a circle around. On the last night of summer camp, the counselors and campers traditionally encircle the campfire and sing songs. Prisons are encircled by barbed wire fences, and hot, damp pavement encircles most public swimming pools. When you hug your little sister, you encircle her with your arms. If your tomato plants are growing too tall and flopping over, you should encircle them with twine to hold them up. Encircle adds the prefix en-, "make or put in" to circle, from its Latin root circus, or "ring."
Vocabulary lists containing encircle
Florida's B.E.S.T Roots: circ, circum
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
China launched missiles and deployed dozens of fighter jets, navy ships and coastguard vessels this week to encircle Taiwan's main island.
From Barron's • Jan. 1, 2026
They constructed a 35-mile earthen berm around the city in an attempt to encircle its one million residents.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 31, 2025
As the earth began to shake around 10 a.m., the elder elephants in the enclosure rushed to encircle the youngsters, the video shows.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2025
Previous structures from X-ray crystallization revealed that formins are made of two identical parts that encircle the actin filament in a ring-like conformation and step along it as it grows.
From Science Daily • Apr. 16, 2024
It caught the end of the tree but didn't encircle it entirely; it was caught in the Y of a small forked branch.
From "Son" by Lois Lowry
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
