circumference

English

Circumference and diameter

Etymology

From Latin circumferentia, from circum (“around”) + ferō (“I carry”). Displaced native Old English ymbgang.

Pronunciation

• (UK) enPR: sûkŭm'frəns, IPA^(key): /sɜːˈkʌm.fɹəns/, enPR: səkŭm'frəns, IPA^(key): /səˈkʌm.fɹəns/

  • Audio (UK):

    (file)

• (US) enPR: sûrkŭm'frəns, IPA^(key): /sɝːˈkʌm.fɹəns/, enPR: sərkŭm'frəns, IPA^(key): /sɚˈkʌm.fɹəns/

  • Audio (US):

    (file)

• (General Australian) enPR: səkŭm'frəns, IPA^(key): /səˈkam.fɹəns/
• Hyphenation: cir‧cum‧fer‧ence
• Rhymes: -əns

Noun

circumference (plural circumferences)

1. (geometry) The line that bounds a circle or other two-dimensional figure.
2. (geometry) The length of such a line.
3. (obsolete) The surface of a round or spherical object.
4. (graph theory) The length of the longest cycle of a graph.

Synonyms

• (geometry): perimeter, umstroke
• (distance measured around any object): girth
• (distance measured around a race track): lap

Related terms

• diameter
• radius
• perimeter

Translations

line that bounds a circle or other two-dimensional object

• Arabic: مُحِيط m (muḥīṭ)
• Armenian: շրջանագիծ (hy) (šrǰanagic) (for a circle), պարագիծ (hy) (paragic)
• Asturian: circunferencia f
• Belarusian: акру́жнасць f (akrúžnascʹ)
• Bengali: পরিধি (bn) (poridhi)
• Bulgarian: перифе́рия (bg) f (periférija), окръ́жност f (okrǎ́žnost), обико́лка (bg) f (obikólka)
• Catalan: circumferència (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 圓周／圆周 (zh) (yuánzhōu)

• Czech: obvod (cs) m
• Danish: omkreds c
• Dutch: omtrek (nl) m
• Finnish: kehä (fi)
• French: circonférence (fr)
• Galician: circunferencia (gl) f
• Georgian: გარშემოწერილობა (garšemoc̣eriloba)
• German: Umfang (de) m
• Greek: περιφέρεια (el) f (periféreia)

  Ancient: περιφέρεια f (periphéreia)

• Hungarian: kerület (hu)
• Irish: timpeall m
• Italian: circonferenza (it) f
• Japanese: 円周 (ja) (えんしゅう, enshū)
• Kannada: ಪರಿಧಿ (kn) (paridhi)
• Korean: 원주(圓周) (ko) (wonju), 둘레 (ko) (dulle)
• Latin: circumferentia f
• Lithuanian: perimetras m
• Macedonian: обем m (obem), периме́тар m (perimétar), обиколка f (obikolka)
• Maori: pae, taiāwhiotanga
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: omkrets (no) m

• Old English: ymbgang m
• Persian: پیرامون (fa) (pirâmun)
• Polish: obwód (pl) m
• Portuguese: circunferência (pt) f
• Romanian: circumferință (ro)
• Russian: окру́жность (ru) f (okrúžnostʹ) (for a circle); пери́метр (ru) m (perímetr)
• Sanskrit: नेमि (sa) f (nemi)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: о̏псе̄г m, о̀бим m

  Roman: ȍpsēg (sh) m, òbim (sh) m

• Slovak: obvod m
• Slovene: obseg (sl) m
• Spanish: circunferencia (es) f
• Swedish: omkrets (sv) c
• Tagalog: tikop
• Thai: เส้นรอบวง (th) (sên-rɔ̂ɔp-wong)
• Ukrainian: окру́жність (uk) f (okrúžnistʹ)
• Vietnamese: chu vi (vi), đường tròn (vi)
• Welsh: cylchyn m

length of such line

• Arabic: مُحِيط m (muḥīṭ)
• Belarusian: акру́жнасць f (akrúžnascʹ)
• Bengali: পরিধি (bn) (poridhi)
• Bulgarian: обико́лка (bg) f (obikólka)
• Catalan: circumferència (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 周長／周长 (zh) (zhōucháng)

• Czech: obvod (cs) m
• Danish: omkreds c
• Dutch: omtrek (nl) m
• Finnish: ympärysmitta (fi)
• French: circonférence (fr) f
• Galician: circunferencia (gl) f
• German: Umfang (de) m, Kreisumfang (de) m
• Greek: περιφέρεια (el) f (periféreia)
• Hebrew: הֶקֵּף (he) m (hekéf)
• Icelandic: ummál (is) n
• Irish: timpeall m
• Italian: circonferenza (it) f
• Japanese: 円周長 (えんしゅうちょう, enshūchō), 周長 (ja) (しゅうちょう, shūchō)
• Kannada: ಪರಿಧಿ (kn) (paridhi)
• Luxembourgish: Ëmfang m
• Macedonian: обем m (obem), периме́тар m (perimétar), обиколка f (obikolka)
• Maori: pae
• Norman: circonféthence f
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: omkrets (no) m

• Old English: ymbgang m
• Portuguese: perímetro (pt) m
• Russian: длина́ окру́жности f (dliná okrúžnosti), пери́метр (ru) m (perímetr)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: о̏псе̄г m, о̀бим m

  Roman: ȍpsēg (sh) m, òbim (sh) m

• Slovak: obvod m
• Slovene: obseg (sl) m
• Spanish: circunferencia (es) f
• Swedish: omkrets (sv) c
• Tagalog: tikop
• Thai: ความยาวเส้นรอบวง (kwaam-yaao-sên-rɔ̂ɔp-wong)
• Turkish: çevre (tr)
• Ukrainian: окру́жність (uk) f (okrúžnistʹ)
• Vietnamese: độ dài chu vi, độ dài (vi)
• Welsh: cylchedd (cy) m

graph theory

• French: circonférence (fr) f

Verb

circumference (third-person singular simple present circumferences, present participle circumferencing, simple past and past participle circumferenced)

1. (obsolete, transitive) To include in a circular space; to bound.
   • 1650, Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica: […], 2nd edition, London: […] A[braham] Miller, for Edw[ard] Dod and Nath[aniel] Ekins, […], →OCLC:

     Nor is the vigour of this great body included only in itself, or circumferenced by its surface