around
Also found in: Thesaurus, Medical, Legal, Financial, Acronyms, Idioms, Encyclopedia.
Related to around: get around
a·round
(ə-round′)adv.
1.
a. On all sides: dirty clothes lying around.
b. In close to all sides from all directions: a field bordered around with tall trees.
2. In a circle or with a circular motion: spun around twice.
3. In succession or rotation: passed the collection plate around; seasons that rolled around each year.
4. In or toward the opposite direction or position: wheeled around to face the attacker.
5.
a. To or among various places; here and there: wander around.
b. To a specific place: Come around again sometime.
6. In or near one's current location: waited around for the next flight.
7. From the beginning to the end: frigid weather the year around.
8. Approximately; about: weighed around 30 pounds; around $1.3 billion in debt.
prep.
1. On all sides of: trees around the field.
2. In such a position as to encircle or surround: a sash around the waist.
3.
a. Here and there within; throughout: on the political stump around the country.
b. In the immediate vicinity of; near: She lives around Norfolk.
4. On or to the farther side of: the house around the corner.
5. So as to pass, bypass, or avoid: a way around an obstacle; got around the difficulty somehow.
6. Approximately at: woke up around seven.
7. In such a way as to have a basis or center in: an economy focused around farming and light industry.
adj.
Idiom: 1. Having a given circumference or perimeter: a pond two miles around.
2. Being in existence: Our old dog is no longer around.
3. Being in evidence; present: asked if the store manager was around.
been around Informal
Had many and varied experiences; been experienced in the ways of the world: a young executive who has been around.
[Middle English : probably a-, in; see a-2 + round, circle; see round1.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
around
(əˈraʊnd)prep
1. situated at various points in: a lot of shelves around the house.
2. from place to place in: driving around Ireland.
3. somewhere in or near: to stay around the house.
4. approximately in: it happened around 1957, I think.
adv
5. surrounding, encircling, or enclosing: a band around her head.
6. in all directions from a point of reference: he owns the land for ten miles around.
7. in the vicinity, esp restlessly but idly: to wait around; stand around.
8. here and there; in no particular place or direction: dotted around.
9. informal (of people) active and prominent in a particular area or profession: some pop stars are around for only a few years.
10. informal present in some place (the exact location being inexact): he's around here somewhere.
11. informal in circulation; available: that type of phone has been around for some years now.
12. informal to many places, so as to have gained considerable experience, often of a worldly or social nature: he gets around; I've been around.
[C17 (rare earlier): from a-2 + round]
Usage: In American English, around is usually used instead of round in adverbial and prepositional senses, except in a few fixed phrases such as all year round. The use of around in adverbial senses is less common in British English
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
a•round
(əˈraʊnd)adv.
1. in a circle, ring, or the like.
2. on all sides; about: fenced in all around.
3. in all directions from a center or point of reference: They own the land for miles around.
4. in a region about a place: all the country around.
5. in circumference: The tree was 40 inches around.
6. in a circular course: to drive around the block.
7. through a sequence or series, as of places or persons: to show someone around.
8. through a recurring period, as of time: Lunchtime rolled around.
9. by a circuitous or roundabout course: The lane goes around past the stables.
10. with a rotating course or movement: The wheels turned around.
11. in or to another or opposite direction, course, opinion, etc.: Sit still and don't turn around. After our arguments, she finally came around.
12. back into consciousness: The smelling salts brought her around.
13. in circulation, action, etc.; nearby; about: He hasn't been around lately.
14. somewhere near or about; nearby: I'll be around till noon.
15. to a specific place: Come around to see me.
prep. 16. about; on all sides; encircling: a halo around his head.
17. so as to encircle, surround, or envelop: to tie paper around a package.
18. on the edge, border, or outer part of: a skirt with fringe around the bottom.
19. from place to place in; about: to get around town.
20. in all or various directions from: to look around one.
21. in the vicinity of: the country around Boston.
22. approximately; about: around five o'clock.
23. here and there in: people around the city.
24. somewhere in or near: to stay around the house.
25. to all or various parts of: to wander around the park.
26. so as to make a circuit about or partial circuit to the other side of: to sail around a cape.
27. reached by making a turn or partial circuit about: the church around the corner.
28. so as to revolve or rotate about a center or axis: the earth's motion around its axis.
29. personally close to: all the advisers around the king.
30. so as to overcome a difficulty: They got around the lack of chairs by sitting on the floor.
Idioms: been around, having had much worldly experience.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
around
– round – about1. talking about movement: 'around', 'round', and 'about' as prepositions or adverbs
When you are talking about movement in many different directions, you can use around, round, or about. You can use these words as adverbs.
It's so romantic up there, flying around in a small plane.
We wandered round for hours.
Police walk about patrolling the city.
You can also use these words as prepositions.
I've been walking around Moscow.
I spent a couple of hours driving round Richmond.
He looked about the room but couldn't see her.
Speakers of American English usually use around, rather than 'round' or 'about', in this sense.
2. talking about position: 'around' and 'round' as prepositions
When one thing is around or round another thing, it surrounds it or is on all sides of it. In this sense, these words are prepositions. You can't use 'about' in this sense.
She was wearing a scarf round her head.
He had a towel wrapped around his head.
The earth moves round the sun.
The satellite passed around the earth.
Speakers of American English usually use around, rather than 'round', in this sense.
3. being present or available: 'around' and 'about' as adverbs
When you are talking about something being generally present or available, you can use around or about, but not 'round', as adverbs.
There is a lot of talent around at the moment.
There are not that many jobs about.
4. 'around' and 'round' used in phrasal verbs
You can also use around or round as the second part of some phrasal verbs, including come (a)round, turn (a)round, look (a)round, and run (a)round.
Don't wait for April to come round before planning your vegetable garden.
When interview time came around, Rachel was nervous.
Imogen got round the problem in a clever way.
A problem has developed and I don't know how to get around it.
He turned round and faced the window.
The old lady turned around angrily.
American English uses only around in these cases.
5. 'around', 'about' and 'round about' meaning 'approximately'
In conversation, around, about and round about are sometimes used to mean 'approximately'.
He owns around 200 acres.
She's about twenty years old.
I've been here for round about ten years.
Be Careful!
Don't use 'round' like this. Don't say, for example, 'He owns round 200 acres.'
Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Adv. | 1. |  around - in the area or vicinity; "a few spectators standing about"; "hanging around"; "waited around for the next flight" |
| 2. |  around - by a circular or circuitous route; "He came all the way around the base"; "the road goes around the pond" | |
| 3. | around - used of movement to or among many different places or in no particular direction; "wandering about with no place to go"; "people were rushing about"; "news gets around (or about)"; "traveled around in Asia"; "he needs advice from someone who's been around"; "she sleeps around" | |
| 4. |  around - in a circle or circular motion; "The wheels are spinning around" | |
| 5. |  around - (of quantities) imprecise but fairly close to correct; "lasted approximately an hour"; "in just about a minute"; "he's about 30 years old"; "I've had about all I can stand"; "we meet about once a month"; "some forty people came"; "weighs around a hundred pounds"; "roughly $3,000"; "holds 3 gallons, more or less"; "20 or so people were at the party" | |
| 6. | around - in or to a reversed position or direction; "about face"; "suddenly she turned around" | |
| 7. | around - to a particular destination either specified or understood; "she came around to see me"; "I invited them around for supper" | |
| 8. |  around - all around or on all sides; "dirty clothes lying around (or about)"; "let's look about for help"; "There were trees growing all around"; "she looked around her" | |
| 9. |  around - in circumference; "the trunk is ten feet around"; "the pond is two miles around" | |
| 10. | around - from beginning to end; throughout; "It rains all year round on Skye"; "frigid weather the year around" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
around
preposition
1. surrounding, about, enclosing, encompassing, framing, encircling, on all sides of, on every side of, environing a prosperous suburb built around a new mosque
2. approximately, about, nearly, close to, roughly, just about, in the region of, circa (used with dates), in the vicinity of, not far off, in the neighbourhood of My salary was around £19,000.
adverb
1. in the opposite direction, the other way I turned around and wrote the title on the board.
2. everywhere, about, throughout, all over, here and there, on all sides, in all directions, to and fro What are you doing following me around?
Related words
prefix circum-
prefix circum-
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
around
adverb3. From one end to the other:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
kolemokolopo celémpřibližněsem a tam
omkringrundt omrundt omkringca.i nærheden
maissaympäriympärillä
okouokolo
á víî og dreif um, í kringumhérna, nærrisnúa viîumumhverfis
･･･ごろに･･･じゅうに･･･を囲んであちこち周りに
...의 주위에빙 둘러서(…)을 빙 둘러주변에주위에
circacircum
apapkārttuvumāvisapkārt
čelom vzad
naokrogokoliokrogv bližini
omkringruntrunt omkring
ซึ่งเคลื่อนเป็นวงกลมประมาณรอบๆ
bao quanhkhắpkhoảngvòng quanhxung quanh
around
[əˈraʊnd]When around is an element in a phrasal verb, eg look around, move around, potter around, look up the verb.
A. ADV → alrededor, en los alrededores
is he around? → ¿está por aquí?
there's a lot of flu around → hay mucha gripe por ahí
all around → por todos lados
she's been around (= travelled) → ha viajado mucho, ha visto mucho mundo (pej) (= experienced) → se las sabe todas
around here → por aquí
is there a chemist's around here? → ¿hay alguna farmacia por aquí?
we're looking around for a house → estamos buscando casa
for miles around → en muchas millas a la redonda
he must be somewhere around → debe de estar por aquí
is he around? → ¿está por aquí?
there's a lot of flu around → hay mucha gripe por ahí
all around → por todos lados
she's been around (= travelled) → ha viajado mucho, ha visto mucho mundo (pej) (= experienced) → se las sabe todas
around here → por aquí
is there a chemist's around here? → ¿hay alguna farmacia por aquí?
we're looking around for a house → estamos buscando casa
for miles around → en muchas millas a la redonda
he must be somewhere around → debe de estar por aquí
B. PREP
1. → alrededor de
she wore a scarf around her neck → llevaba una bufanda alrededor del cuello
she ignored the people around her → ignoró a la gente que estaba a su alrededor
to wander around the town → pasearse por la ciudad
there were books all around the house → había libros en todas partes de la casa or por toda la casa
to go around the world → dar la vuelta al mundo
see also round, corner
she wore a scarf around her neck → llevaba una bufanda alrededor del cuello
she ignored the people around her → ignoró a la gente que estaba a su alrededor
to wander around the town → pasearse por la ciudad
there were books all around the house → había libros en todas partes de la casa or por toda la casa
to go around the world → dar la vuelta al mundo
see also round, corner
2. (= approximately) → aproximadamente, alrededor de
it costs around £100 → cuesta alrededor de or aproximadamente 100 libras
around 50 → 50 más o menos
he must be around 50 → debe de tener unos 50 años
around 1950 → alrededor de 1950, hacia 1950
around two o'clock → a eso de las dos
it costs around £100 → cuesta alrededor de or aproximadamente 100 libras
around 50 → 50 más o menos
he must be around 50 → debe de tener unos 50 años
around 1950 → alrededor de 1950, hacia 1950
around two o'clock → a eso de las dos
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
around
[əˈraʊnd] adv
(= surrounding) → autour, tout autour
(= nearby) → dans les parages
Is he around? → Est-il dans les parages?, Est-il là?
around here → près d'ici
Is there a chemist's around here? → Est-ce qu'il y a une pharmacie près d'ici?
He lives around here → Il habite près d'ici.
BUT Il habite dans les parages.
Is he around? → Est-il dans les parages?, Est-il là?
around here → près d'ici
Is there a chemist's around here? → Est-ce qu'il y a une pharmacie près d'ici?
He lives around here → Il habite près d'ici.
BUT Il habite dans les parages.
to have been around
He has been around → Il a du vécu.
He has been around → Il a du vécu.
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
around
adv → herum, rum (inf); a house with gardens all around → ein von Gärten umgebenes Haus, ein Haus mit Gärten ringsherum; I looked all around → ich sah mich nach allen Seiten um; books lying all around → überall herumliegende Bücher; they came from all around → sie kamen aus allen Richtungen or von überall her; slowly, he turned around → er drehte sich langsam um; for miles around → meilenweit im Umkreis; to stroll/travel around → herumschlendern/-reisen; is he around? → ist er da?; if you want me I’ll be around → ich bin da, falls du mich brauchst; he must be around somewhere → er muss hier irgendwo sein or stecken (inf); I didn’t know you were around → ich wusste nicht, dass du hier bist; he’s been around! → der kennt sich aus!; it’s been around for ages → das ist schon uralt; he’s been around for ages (inf) → der ist schon ewig hier (inf); see you around! (inf) → also, bis demnächst!, bis bald!; where have you been? — (just) around → wo warst du? — weg!
prep
(= right round) (movement, position) → um; (in a circle) → um, … herum
(= in, through) to wander around the city → durch die Stadt spazieren; to travel around Scotland → durch Schottland reisen; to talk around a subject → um ein Thema herumreden; to be or stay around the house → zu Hause bleiben; I left it around your office somewhere → ich habe es irgendwo in deinem Büro gelassen; the paper must be around here somewhere → die Zeitung muss hier irgendwo (he)rumliegen; the church must be around here somewhere → die Kirche muss hier irgendwo sein
(= approximately) (with date) → um; (with time of day) → gegen; (with weight, price) → etwa, um die (inf) ? also round
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
around
[əˈraʊnd]Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
around
(əˈraund) preposition, adverb1. on all sides of or in a circle about (a person, thing etc). Flowers grew around the tree; They danced around the fire; There were flowers all around.
2. here and there (in a house, room etc). Clothes had been left lying around (the house); I wandered around.
preposition near to (a time, place etc). around three o'clock.
adverb1. in the opposite direction. Turn around!
2. near-by. If you need me, I'll be somewhere around.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
around
→ حَوَالِي, حَوْل, حَوْلَ, في أَرْجَاء, مِنْ حَوْلِ kolem, okolo, po celém ca., omkring, rundt om, rundt omkring herum, rundherum, um, um ... herum γύρω, γύρω από, περί, τριγύρω alrededor, alrededor de, aproximadamente, en maissa, ympäri, ympärillä autour, autour de, de part et d'autre de, vers oko, uokolo dappertutto, intorno, intorno a ･･･ごろに, ･･･じゅうに, ･･･を囲んで, あちこち, 周りに ...의 주위에, 빙 둘러서, (…)을 빙 둘러, 주변에, 주위에 rond, rondom, verspreid in omkring, rundt, rundt (om) dookoła, około, w każdym miejscu, wokół à volta de, ao redor, ao redor de, perto de, por, por toda parte, por volta de вокруг, всюду, около, повсюду omkring, runt, runt omkring ซึ่งเคลื่อนเป็นวงกลม, ประมาณ, รอบๆ çevrili, civarında, etrafında, etrafını, her yerinde bao quanh, khắp, khoảng, vòng quanh, xung quanh 周围, 四处, 围着, 大约Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009
around
prep. en, cerca de;
vt.
to look ___ → buscar;
to turn ___ → voltear, dar la vuelta; virarse;
adv. alrededor, cerca, a la vuelta; más o menos;
___ here → por aquí, en los alrededores.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
Collins Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009
around
adv alrededor; aproximadamente; prep alrededor de; around your arm..alrededor de su brazoEnglish-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.