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round

round

289 1.0
Having the shape of a circle or sphere
  • adjective
  • /raʊnd/
: redondo
  • Some men think the earth is round.
  • Earth is round
  • a round face
  • a round hole

We knew the world was round in ancient Greece.

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Examples

  • When she laughed, always in a mannerly way, her little round face dimpled near the chin.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • Those round things are called tires, and they go under the car!

  • How do they make them round like this?

  • It's like a little round stone like thing.

  • It's like this perfect round like rock with this little point.

  • We can see all of the little sort of round cells inside.

  • So, people say "I want to live in a round house."

  • This is a round ball hitting a round post and going in.

  • I have gray hair and round spectacles.

  • The children played with a round ball in the backyard.

Synonyms

circular
vsround
74 2.8

Having the shape of a circle

is broader and also includes three dimensional ball shapes
rounded
vsround
45 2.4

Having a smooth, curved shape with no sharp points

is the general shape word including exact circles and spheres
spherical
vsround
17 4.2

Round like a ball

also covers flat disk shapes as well as three dimensional balls
roundish
vsround
2 2.8

A shape that is almost like a circle

is the neutral term for fully circular or ball forms
cycloid
vsround
1 9.1

Round in shape like a wheel

is the general term covering both flat and ball forms
orbed
vsround
1 8.7

Round and shaped like a ball

is the simple shape term for both flat and three dimensional forms
roundy
vsround
  • Informal
1 6.6

A little round in shape like a small stone

is the broader standard word for exact circles and spheres
orbiculate
vsround
9.9

Round or nearly round in shape

is the basic term for fully circular or spherical forms

Antonyms

447 1.0

Having four equal sides and four right angles

414 1.0

Level and even without parts higher or lower

Idioms

a round of
  • Informal
14 3.5

A set of drinks bought for everyone, with people taking turns to pay

10 5.2

To keep doing the same thing without making progress

5 8.2

A person who behaves very strangely or does not think clearly

To become so angry or stressed that you cannot think clearly

To come together to show strong support for a leader or the country in danger

in the round
  • Jargon
1 4.7

People sit in a circle so everyone can see and take part

A person who does not fit into a job or group

9.9

To finally do something you have been putting off for a long time

Happens all day and night without stopping

Compounds

154 2.5

The first set of matches in a competition where all players or teams play

78 3.0

Happening or available all year

A short time when many people clap to show approval

48 1.6

A journey to a place and back to where you started

Happening all day and all night without stopping

Round Table
  • Literature
13 6.5

A large round table in stories about King Arthur where knights sit as equals

merry-go-round
  • Texting
11 4.1

A repeating cycle of events that seems pointless and has no end

11 3.3

A discussion where people who are equal share ideas about a topic

11 2.3

An occasion of playing all holes on a golf course, usually 18 holes

A round ride with seats shaped like animals that turns for people to sit on

10 2.1

A ticket that lets you travel to a place and back

A set of drinks bought for everyone in a group at the same time

6 9.1

A member of King Arthur's court who sits at the Round Table and is brave and fair

4 1.0

A curved form with no sharp corners like a circle

3 4.0

A competition where each team or player plays every other

1 7.0

A round table where King Arthur and his knights sat as equals

1 4.1

Having a rounded end often found on tools like scissors

A thing with a curved bottom that rolls and is hard to stand

round shot
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A solid metal ball used in cannons in the past

1 3.2

Usual tasks a person does every day

1 5.6

Having a curved bottom rather than a flat one

theater in the round
  • Specialized
1 5.4

A theater where the audience sits around a central stage

1 6.8

A bone that is roughly round in shape, often from animals

quarter round
  • Specialized
1 7.2

A small curved strip of wood or plastic used where a floor meets a wall to hide the gap

1 3.1

A lean cut of beef from the back leg of a cow

round-bottom flask
  • Specialized
1 4.9

A glass container with a round body and a narrow neck used for heating or mixing chemicals

1 5.1

A lean piece of beef from the upper back leg used for roasting or thin slicing

round-nose
  • Specialized
1 4.9

Pliers with smooth rounded jaws used to bend wire and make loops

round file
  • Informal
1 7.8

A joking name for a trash can where unwanted papers go

1 5.5

A letter signed by many people to show a shared opinion

round trip
  • Specialized
1 3.9

The time it takes for data to go and come back over a network

A meeting where people at the same level discuss a subject together

round robin
  • Specialized
1 3.9

A way of giving tasks to computers one after another

1 3.3

People move together in a circle following set steps, often with partners

round hand
  • Archaic
1 9.5

A clear style of writing with large round letters

round file
  • Specialized
1 7.0

A metal tool with a round shape to smooth or widen holes

round arch
  • Specialized
1 4.1

A curved half-circle shape above a door or bridge seen in Roman buildings

1 5.8

A cut of beef from the rear leg used for pot roast

A team that watches a place all day and night to keep it safe

1 2.7

A regular route for delivering newspapers often done by a young person before school

merry-go-round
  • Texting
3.8

A set of images on a website that change automatically or when you click

round angle
  • Specialized
4.6

A full circle that measures 360 degrees

5.7

A large clam you can eat with a hard rounded shell

5.4

Couples perform planned steps while moving in a circle to music guided by a leader

A small tree from East Asia that makes round orange fruits with sweet peel and sour flesh

A cord of tissue on each side of the womb that runs to the outer female genital area

9.3

A small long thin fish that lives near coasts in the western Atlantic

8.1

A large tent that holds people for a circus show

round window
  • Specialized
7.6

A small opening in the inner ear wall that leads to the part that senses sound

round whitefish
  • Specialized
9.3

A freshwater fish with a bronze back and white belly from northern lakes and rivers

round-arm
  • Specialized
7.3

A way of using the arm that swings out at shoulder height to throw or hit in sports like cricket

round-fruited
  • Specialized
4.3

A plant or tree that grows round fruit like berries

A garden plant with a round bulb and purple flower head used for food and decoration

9.9

A North American orchid with two round leaves and greenish white flowers on one stalk

round-nose
  • Specialized
6.0

A bullet with a rounded tip that is less likely to go through things

9.9

A brown mushroom with a pink stem and smooth round spores that grows on wood

round-trip light time
  • Specialized
9.6

The time it takes for a light signal to travel to a spacecraft or planet and back

A small animal like a rat that lives in Florida wetlands and has a round tail

8.2

A quick collection of money from a group for a gift or charity

How Round

spherical
17 4.2
round
289 1.0
oval
28 1.0
angular
17 3.8

Surface Forms

round positive

Etymology

Round meaning 'circular' comes from an old word for 'circle', so it names shapes that are like a ring or ball and have no sharp edges.