	Site Map \| FAQ in Daily Almanac for Feb 10, 2010
Skip Navigation Home Black History Month Atlas Encyclopedia Dictionary Thesaurus Features Quizzes Timelines Countries Slideshows

Fact Monster Kid's reference,
games, quizzes

Editor's Favorites

Dictionary

circum-

a prefix with the meaning “round about, around,” found in Latin loanwords, esp. derivatives of verbs that had the general senses “to encompass or surround” (circumference; circumjacent; circumstance) or “to go around” by the means or in the manner specified by the verb (circumnavigate; circumscribe); on this basis forming adjectives in English with the meaning “surrounding” that named by the stem (circumocular; circumpolar).