as in limited
having distinct or certain limits
the powers of that state's governor are so sharply circumscribed that often his hands are tied by the state legislature
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in restricted
to set bounds or an upper limit for
circumscribed his enthusiasm so as not to make the losing side feel worse
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in defined
to mark the limits of
Lake Michigan circumscribes the city of Chicago on the east
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of circumscribed
Rachel Swan,
San Francisco Chronicle,
6 Feb. 2026
Yes, their lives have become this circumscribed.
—
Lisa Kennedy,
Variety,
31 Jan. 2026
Thompson-Hernández acknowledges that while Watts might be a small community, a relative sliver of greater Los Angeles, imagination flourishes in the most circumscribed places.
—
Vikram Murthi,
IndieWire,
29 Jan. 2026
Joan understands that their circumscribed lives now give their eternity its meaning.
—
Jp Mangalindan,
Time,
26 Nov. 2025
In reality, as for most visiting celebrities, her itinerary was narrowly circumscribed.
—
Zak Cheney-Rice,
Vulture,
6 Nov. 2025
While Swift’s life is extraordinary, it’s also cloistered by wealth and celebrity; perhaps the range of feelings she’s allowed to experience has become circumscribed.
—
Amanda Petrusich,
New Yorker,
3 Oct. 2025
Barrett understood its more circumscribed project.
—
Stefan Fatsis,
The Atlantic,
13 Sep. 2025
There’s a circumscribed way to open the soju bottle, a correct way to pour and drink.
—
Joan MacDonald,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Adam Ciralsky,
Vanity Fair,
19 Mar. 2026
Eventually, the area in the Pentagon where reporters were allowed was circumscribed to a single corridor outside the press room – even though the public affairs officers who worked most closely with reporters were in an office on the other side of the 6½-million-square-foot building.
—
Kathy Kiely,
The Conversation,
17 Mar. 2026
Under the Constitution, the concept of a militia is a specific and narrowly circumscribed one.
—
Larry Pino,
The Orlando Sentinel,
1 Feb. 2026
But the apartheid regime became a police state that heavily circumscribed its white citizens’ lives, too.
—
Eve Fairbanks,
The Dial,
27 Jan. 2026
No matter their financial situation, these characters are circumscribed by their situations (class, responsibilities, families) and desire more—or something else entirely.
—
Diana Arterian,
Literary Hub,
15 Jan. 2026
Their sovereign capacity to realign is circumscribed by the very architectures that protect them.
—
Pratap Bhanu Mehta,
Time,
15 Jan. 2026
Only one major financial institution is currently investing in a presence downtown, defined as the area circumscribed by I-35, I-30, I-45 and Woodall Rogers Freeway.
—
Sasha Richie,
Dallas Morning News,
9 Jan. 2026
Each of Cicellis’s young protagonists arrives at the grim realization that their life is circumscribed not by a god but by the pull of obligation to an undeserving parent or mentor.
—
Rachel Vorona Cote,
The Atlantic,
5 Jan. 2026
Adjective
Signs will redirect cyclists around the circumscribed area, requiring them in some cases to take winding alternative routes.
—
Rachel Swan,
San Francisco Chronicle,
6 Feb. 2026
Yes, their lives have become this circumscribed.
—
Lisa Kennedy,
Variety,
31 Jan. 2026
Thompson-Hernández acknowledges that while Watts might be a small community, a relative sliver of greater Los Angeles, imagination flourishes in the most circumscribed places.
—
Vikram Murthi,
IndieWire,
29 Jan. 2026
Joan understands that their circumscribed lives now give their eternity its meaning.
—
Jp Mangalindan,
Time,
26 Nov. 2025
In reality, as for most visiting celebrities, her itinerary was narrowly circumscribed.
—
Zak Cheney-Rice,
Vulture,
6 Nov. 2025
While Swift’s life is extraordinary, it’s also cloistered by wealth and celebrity; perhaps the range of feelings she’s allowed to experience has become circumscribed.
—
Amanda Petrusich,
New Yorker,
3 Oct. 2025
Barrett understood its more circumscribed project.
—
Stefan Fatsis,
The Atlantic,
13 Sep. 2025
There’s a circumscribed way to open the soju bottle, a correct way to pour and drink.
—
Joan MacDonald,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
Representatives from hostile states like Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea are circumscribed in their movements, typically limited to a small radius around their official posts—an embassy, a consulate, a permanent mission to the UN.
—
Adam Ciralsky,
Vanity Fair,
19 Mar. 2026
Eventually, the area in the Pentagon where reporters were allowed was circumscribed to a single corridor outside the press room – even though the public affairs officers who worked most closely with reporters were in an office on the other side of the 6½-million-square-foot building.
—
Kathy Kiely,
The Conversation,
17 Mar. 2026
Under the Constitution, the concept of a militia is a specific and narrowly circumscribed one.
—
Larry Pino,
The Orlando Sentinel,
1 Feb. 2026
But the apartheid regime became a police state that heavily circumscribed its white citizens’ lives, too.
—
Eve Fairbanks,
The Dial,
27 Jan. 2026
No matter their financial situation, these characters are circumscribed by their situations (class, responsibilities, families) and desire more—or something else entirely.
—
Diana Arterian,
Literary Hub,
15 Jan. 2026
Their sovereign capacity to realign is circumscribed by the very architectures that protect them.
—
Pratap Bhanu Mehta,
Time,
15 Jan. 2026
Only one major financial institution is currently investing in a presence downtown, defined as the area circumscribed by I-35, I-30, I-45 and Woodall Rogers Freeway.
—
Sasha Richie,
Dallas Morning News,
9 Jan. 2026
Each of Cicellis’s young protagonists arrives at the grim realization that their life is circumscribed not by a god but by the pull of obligation to an undeserving parent or mentor.
—
Rachel Vorona Cote,
The Atlantic,
5 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for circumscribed
Adjective
-
Super Bowl veteran Matthew Stafford, on the verge of his 18th season, will get limited snaps in the offseason, leaving Bennett and Simpson to take additional first-team snaps.
-
While the numbers of comedies on the ballot stayed almost level with last year (up very slightly to 71 from 69), dramas dropped from 126 in 2025 to 110 this year, and limited/anthology series are down to 31, from 44 last year.
Verb
-
Utah restricted fireworks and declared a state of emergency Friday ahead of July Fourth celebrations as the United States' largest wildfire expanded its reach across more tinder-dry forest, as crews rush to fight new blazes in the arid state.
-
Access to bug details and links may be kept restricted until a majority of users are updated with a fix, Google noted in its blog.
Verb
-
Sentience is defined as the basic capacity to feel and to experience sensations.
-
Through five innings, the 27-year-old struck out seven batters and gave up seven hits while allowing two runs, continuing to cement himself as Miami’s most consistent pitcher in a season defined by injuries across the pitching staff.
Adjective
-
Cristiano Ronaldo, 41, continues to defy time at the World Cup, embodying the finite nature of elite careers.
-
Big dreams have a tendency to shape-shift when they are transformed into earthbound finite reality.
Verb
-
The suspect planned out his attack, and specifically chose a place that would be confined and populated, Patel said.
-
Because for security reasons and all kinds of other reasons, you are confined.
Verb
-
What The $10 Million Cap Changes At the old $1 million ceiling, operational risk was bounded by the dollar amount.
-
Then after another Algerian wave of pressure, Gouiri tapped in a loose ball after a corner from Anis Hadj Moussa, Mahrez’s replacement after the hydration break in the 76th minute, bounded loosely through the box.
Adjective
-
The narrow 3-2 decision was made at a meeting early Friday morning, the third and final such vote on a data center moratorium.
-
Group 1 is pulmonary arterial hypertension, a rare and severe version that occurs when blood vessels in the lungs narrow and stiffen.
Cite this Entry
“Circumscribed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/circumscribed. Accessed 28 Jun. 2026.
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