Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “circle” come from?

Circle comes from Middle English cercle, from Latin circulus, ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European (s)ker-, meaning to turn or bend.

circle (English): A two-dimensional geometric figure, a line,...

Definitions

  1. A two-dimensional geometric figure, a line,...

Ancestry of “circle”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishcircle—
2Old Frenchcerclecircle
3Latincirculuscircle; An orbit; A ring, hoop
4Latin-ulusUsed to form a diminutive of a noun, indicating...
5Proto-Italic-olos—
6Proto-Italic-elos—
7Proto-Indo-European-e-lós—
8Proto-Indo-European-lósForms agent nouns from verbal roots

Words derived from “circle”

  • semicircle
  • encircle
  • encirclement
  • Circleville
  • circumcircle
  • maxicircle
  • minicircle
  • incircle
  • circlewise
  • circler
  • circleth
  • subcircle
  • encircleth
  • circlest
  • circlelike
  • demicircle
  • recircle
  • gyrocircle
  • supercircle
  • circlejerk
  • quasicircle
  • midcircle
  • encirclet
  • 서클
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -lós →