CIRCUMFERENCE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does circumference mean? 

• CIRCUMFERENCE (noun)
  The noun CIRCUMFERENCE has 3 senses:

1. the size of something as given by the distance around it

2. the boundary line encompassing an area or object

3. the length of the closed curve of a circle

  Familiarity information: CIRCUMFERENCE used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• CIRCUMFERENCE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

The size of something as given by the distance around it

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

circumference; perimeter

Hypernyms ("circumference" is a kind of...):

size (the physical magnitude of something (how big it is))

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "circumference"):

girth (the distance around a person's body)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The boundary line encompassing an area or object

Classified under:

Nouns denoting spatial position

Synonyms:

circuit; circumference

Context example:

a danger to all races over the whole circumference of the globe

Hypernyms ("circumference" is a kind of...):

border; borderline; boundary line; delimitation; mete (a line that indicates a boundary)

Derivation:

circumferent (closely encircling)

circumferential (lying around or just outside the edges or outskirts)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The length of the closed curve of a circle

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Hypernyms ("circumference" is a kind of...):

length (the linear extent in space from one end to the other; the longest dimension of something that is fixed in place)

Meronyms (parts of "circumference"):

sextant (a unit of angular distance equal to 60 degrees)

straight angle (an angle of 180 degrees)

 Context examples 

Mucosal breaks that extend between the tops of two or more mucosal folds, but which involve less than 75% of the esophageal circumference.

(LA Grade C, NCI Thesaurus)

High levels of dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls were associated with an average head circumference reduction of 6.4 mm and an abdominal circumference reduction of 2.4 mm.

(Persistent organic pollutants in maternal blood linked to smaller fetal size, National Institutes of Health)

Mucosal breaks which involve at least 75% of the esophageal circumference.

(LA Grade D, NCI Thesaurus)

The length of a straight line passing through the center of a circle or sphere and connecting two points on the circumference.

(Diameter, NCI Thesaurus)

In addition to head circumference measurement, which is the primary criterion for microcephaly notification, other malformations resulting from the infection will be investigated.

(Brazil: Babies of mothers infected with Zika will be monitored for up to 3 years, Agência Brasil)

The scientists used weight, height, waist and hip circumference, and body mass index measurements taken at baseline, as well as self-reported information on weight at baseline and follow-up five years later.

(Sleeping with artificial light at night associated with weight gain in women, National Institutes of Health)

Besides measuring weight and waist circumference, the researchers monitored all participants’ insulin and blood sugar levels, resting metabolic rates (energy expenditures while sedentary), and adherence to the whole-grain diets using specialized tests.

(Whole Grains Deliver on Health Benefits, U.S. Department of Agriculture)

It can measure any circumference to the nearest millimeter and is manufactured from paper-thin, non-stretch, non-shrink plastic.

(Lasso-O Measuring Tape, NICHD)

A measuring tape frequently used to measure head circumference in newborns.

(Lasso-O Measuring Tape, NCI Thesaurus)

The longest possible length of a straight line passing through the center of a circular or spheroid object that connects two points on the circumference.

(Longest Diameter, NCI Thesaurus)