round
/ˈɹaʊnd/
adverb
Meaning
So as to form a circle or trace a circular path, or approximation thereof.
"High above, vultures circled around."
So as to surround or be near.
"Everybody please gather around."
Nearly; approximately; about.
"An adult elephant weighs around five tons."
From place to place.
"Look around and see what you find."
From one state or condition to an opposite or very different one; with a metaphorical change in direction; bringing about awareness or agreement.
"He used to stay up late but his new girlfriend changed that around."
(with turn, spin etc.) So as to partially or completely rotate; so as to face in the opposite direction.
"She spun around a few times."
Used with verbs to indicate repeated or continuous action, or in numerous locations or with numerous people.
"I asked around, and no-one really liked it."
Used with certain verbs to suggest unproductive activity.
preposition
Meaning
Defining a circle or closed curve containing a thing.
"I planted a row of lilies around the statue."
(of abstract things) Centred upon; surrounding.
"There has been a lot of controversy around the handling of personal information."
Following the perimeter of a specified area and returning to the starting point.
"She went around the track fifty times."
Following a path which curves near an object, with the object on the inside of the curve.
"The road took a brief detour around the large rock formation, then went straight on."
Near; in the vicinity of.
"I don't want you around me."
At or to various places within.
"She went around the office and got everyone to sign the card."
noun
Meaning
A circular or spherical object or part of an object.
A circular or repetitious route.
"The guards have started their rounds; the prisoner should be caught soon."
A general outburst from a group of people at an event.
"The candidate got a round of applause after every sentence or two."
A song that is sung by groups of people with each subset of people starting at a different time.
A serving of something; a portion of something to each person in a group.
"They brought us a round of drinks about every thirty minutes."
A single individual portion or dose of medicine.
One sandwich (two full slices of bread with filling).
A long-bristled, circular-headed paintbrush used in oil and acrylic painting.
A firearm cartridge, bullet, or any individual ammunition projectile. Originally referring to the spherical projectile ball of a smoothbore firearm. Compare round shot and solid shot.
One of the specified pre-determined segments of the total time of a sport event, such as a boxing or wrestling match, during which contestants compete before being signaled to stop.
A stage, level, set of events in a game
(drafting, CAD) A rounded relief or cut at an edge, especially an outside edge, added for a finished appearance and to soften sharp edges.
A strip of material with a circular face that covers an edge, gap, or crevice for decorative, sanitary, or security purposes.
"All furniture in the nursery had rounds on the edges and in the crevices."
(butchery) The hindquarters of a bovine.
A rung, as of a ladder.
A crosspiece that joins and braces the legs of a chair.
A series of changes or events ending where it began; a series of like events recurring in continuance; a cycle; a periodical revolution.
"the round of the seasons a round of pleasures"
A course of action or conduct performed by a number of persons in turn, or one after another, as if seated in a circle.
A series of duties or tasks which must be performed in turn, and then repeated.
A circular dance.
Rotation, as in office; succession.
A general discharge of firearms by a body of troops in which each soldier fires once.
An assembly; a group; a circle.
"a round of politicians"
A brewer's vessel in which the fermentation is concluded, the yeast escaping through the bunghole.
A vessel filled, as for drinking.
A round-top.
A round of beef.
Synonyms
verb
Meaning
To shape something into a curve.
"The carpenter rounded the edges of the table."
To become shaped into a curve.
(with "out") To finish; to complete; to fill out.
"She rounded out her education with only a single mathematics class."
To approximate a number, especially a decimal number by the closest whole number.
"Ninety-five rounds up to one hundred."
To turn past a boundary.
"Helen watched him until he rounded the corner."
To turn and attack someone or something (used with on).
"As a group of policemen went past him, one of them rounded on him, grabbing him by the arm."
To advance to home plate.
"And the runners round the bases on the double by Jones."
To go round, pass, go past.
To encircle; to encompass.
To grow round or full; hence, to attain to fullness, completeness, or perfection.
To do ward rounds.
To go round, as a guard; to make the rounds.
To go or turn round; to wheel about.
Synonyms
adjective
Meaning
(physical) Shape.
Complete, whole, not lacking.
"The baker sold us a round dozen."
(of a number) Convenient for rounding other numbers to; for example, ending in a zero.
"One hundred is a nice round number."
Pronounced with the lips drawn together; rounded.
Outspoken; plain and direct; unreserved; not mincing.
"a round answer; a round oath"
Finished; polished; not defective or abrupt; said of authors or their writing style.
Consistent; fair; just; applied to conduct.
Large in magnitude.
"a round sum"
(authorship, of a fictional character) Well-written and well-characterized; complex and reminiscent of a real person.
Vaulted.
Synonyms