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circuit

A circuit is a circular path. It could be the circuit of an electric current or the route of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. If you’re promoting your new book, you’ll be making the talk show circuit.

What all these circuits have in common the idea of tracing a circle. A circuit preacher doesn't stay at one church, but instead travels from church to church, following a particular route. Originally US judges traveled from town to town, too, and today’s division of the country into twelve judicial circuits is a holdover from that era — "the Third Circuit," for instance, includes Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.

PRIMARY MEANINGS OF: circuit

1
 nv
a journey or route all the way around a particular place or area
make a circuit
2
 n
(law) a judicial division of a state or the United States (so-called because originally judges traveled and held court in different locations); one of the twelve groups of states in the United States that is covered by a particular circuit court of appeals
3
 n
the boundary line encompassing an area or object
4
 n
an electrical device that provides a path for electrical current to flow
FULL DEFINITIONS OF: circuit
1

n a journey or route all the way around a particular place or area

“we took a quick circuit of the park”
“a ten-day coach circuit of the island”
Synonyms:
tour
Types:
show 7 types...
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walkabout
a walking trip or tour
grand tour
a sightseeing tour of a building or institution
grand tour
an extended cultural tour of Europe taken by wealthy young Englishmen (especially in the 18th century) as part of their education
itineration
journeying from place to place preaching or lecturing; a preaching tour or lecturing tour
package holiday, package tour
a tour arranged by a travel agent; transportation and food and lodging are all provided at an inclusive price
pub crawl
a tour of bars or public houses (usually taking one drink at each stop)
whistle-stop tour
a tour by a candidate as part of a political campaign in which a series of small towns are visited
Type of:
journey, journeying
the act of traveling from one place to another

n movement once around a course

Synonyms:
circle, lap
Types:
pace lap
the first lap of a car race that prepares the cars for a fast start
lap of honour, victory lap
a lap by the winning person or team run to celebrate the victory
Type of:
locomotion, travel
self-propelled movement

n a racetrack for automobile races

Synonyms:
racing circuit
Type of:
racecourse, racetrack, raceway, track
a course over which races are run

n an established itinerary of venues or events that a particular group of people travel to

“she's a familiar name on the club circuit”
“on the lecture circuit”
“the judge makes a circuit of the courts in his district”
“the international tennis circuit”
Type of:
itinerary, path, route
an established line of travel or access

v make a circuit

“They were circuiting about the state”
Type of:
go, locomote, move, travel
change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
2

n (law) a judicial division of a state or the United States (so-called because originally judges traveled and held court in different locations); one of the twelve groups of states in the United States that is covered by a particular circuit court of appeals

Type of:
group, grouping
any number of entities (members) considered as a unit
3

n the boundary line encompassing an area or object

Synonyms:
circumference
Type of:
border, borderline, boundary line, delimitation, mete
a line that indicates a boundary
4

n an electrical device that provides a path for electrical current to flow

Synonyms:
electric circuit, electrical circuit
Types:
show 28 types...
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bridge, bridge circuit
a circuit consisting of two branches (4 arms arranged in a diamond configuration) across which a meter is connected
bridged-T
a circuit consisting of a T-network with an additional shunt bridging the two series circuits
closed circuit, loop
a complete electrical circuit around which current flows or a signal circulates
computer circuit
a circuit that is part of a computer
delay line
a circuit designed to introduce a calculated delay into the transmission of a signal
feedback circuit, feedback loop
a circuit that feeds back some of the output to the input of a system
flip-flop
an electronic circuit that can assume either of two stable states
clipper, limiter
(electronics) a nonlinear electronic circuit whose output is limited in amplitude; used to limit the instantaneous amplitude of a waveform (to clip off the peaks of a waveform)
data link, link
an interconnecting circuit between two or more locations for the purpose of transmitting and receiving data
open circuit
an incomplete electrical circuit in which no current flows
pulse timing circuit
a circuit that times pulses
resonant circuit, resonator
an electrical circuit that combines capacitance and inductance in such a way that a periodic electric oscillation will reach maximum amplitude
series circuit
a circuit having its parts connected serially
squelch, squelch circuit, squelcher
an electric circuit that cuts off a receiver when the signal becomes weaker than the noise
tank circuit
an oscillatory circuit
T-network
a circuit formed by two equal series circuits with a shunt between them
wiring
a circuit of wires for the distribution of electricity
acoustic delay line, sonic delay line
a delay line based on the time of propagation of sound waves
control circuit, negative feedback circuit
a feedback circuit that subtracts from the input
electromagnetic delay line
a delay line based on the time of propagation of electromagnetic waves
gate, logic gate
a computer circuit with several inputs but only one output that can be activated by particular combinations of inputs
integrated circuit, microcircuit
a microelectronic computer circuit incorporated into a chip or semiconductor; a whole system rather than a single component
interface, port
(computer science) computer circuit consisting of the hardware and associated circuitry that links one device with another (especially a computer and a hard disk drive or other peripherals)
light circuit, lighting circuit
wiring that provides power to electric lights
module
computer circuit consisting of an assembly of electronic components (as of computer hardware)
parallel circuit, shunt circuit
a closed circuit in which the current divides into two or more paths before recombining to complete the circuit
printed circuit
computer circuit consisting of an electronic sub-assembly; copper conductors are laminated on an insulating board or card and circuit components are inserted into holes and dip soldered
Wheatstone bridge
a bridge used to measure resistances
Type of:
electrical device
a device that produces or is powered by electricity
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