Circumscribe: Definition, Usage, and Examples

Meaning 1：set limits on (circumscribe)

circumscribe 🔊

/ˈsɜːrkəmskraɪb/

vt.

To limit someone's freedom, rights, or power by setting clear boundaries around what they can do.

Circumscribe definition illustrated as a digital boundary limiting personal data access on a smartphone screen.

set limits on 🔊

➕

/sɛt ˈlɪmɪts ɒn/

vt.

To define and enforce clear boundaries on something, effectively restricting its scope, extent, or power.

📁 Category：Laws & Regulations 🔖 Level：Advanced

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

From Latin 'circum-' (around) + 'scribere' (to write). Literally means to draw a line around something.

💡 Mnemonic

Imagine drawing a circle (circum-) around rules (scribe) to set limits.

📖 Example

The new data privacy law circumscribes what information tech companies can collect from their users. 🔊 The new data privacy law sets clear limits on the information that tech companies are allowed to gather from their users.

🔗 Collocations

circumscribe the authority – to set boundaries on the scope of power

circumscribe a right – to define and limit a specific entitlement

circumscribe the power – to confine or restrict the extent of influence or control

🔄 Synonyms

restrict (vt.) – to put a limit on something

limit (vt.) – to keep something within a particular boundary or scope

confine (vt.) – to keep something within certain limits

🚫 Antonyms

expand (v.) – to increase the scope, range, or size of something

liberate (vt.) – to set someone or something free from restrictions

🌱 Derivatives

circumscription (n.) – the act of circumscribing; a limit or boundary

📖 Cultural Story

Originates from the Latin 'circumscribere'. In ancient mathematics, to 'circumscribe' a shape meant to draw another shape around it, touching it at all points. This technical meaning evolved into the modern sense of setting firm boundaries around actions or powers.