Main Entry:

epi·cy·cle

Pronunciation:

\ˈe-pə-ˌsī-kəl\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

Middle English epicicle, from Late Latin epicyclus, from Greek epikyklos, from epi- + kyklos circle — more at wheel

Date:

14th century

1in Ptolemaic astronomy : a circle in which a planet moves and which has a center that is itself carried around at the same time on the circumference of a larger circle2: a process going on within a larger one

— epi·cy·clic \ˌe-pə-ˈsī-klik, -ˈsi-klik\ adjective