round

I. adjective Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French rund, reund, from Latin rotundus — more at rotund Date: 14th century 1. a. (1) having every part of the surface or circumference equidistant from the center (2) cylindrical <

a round peg

> b. approximately round <

a round face

> 2. well filled out ; plump, shapely 3. a. complete, full <

a round dozen

> <

a round ton

> b. approximately correct; especially exact only to a specific decimal or place <

use the round number 1400 for the exact figure 1411

> c. substantial in amount ; ample <

a good round price — T. B. Costain

> 4. direct in utterance ; outspoken <

a round denunciation

> 5. moving in or forming a circle 6. a. brought to completion or perfection ; finished b. presented with lifelike fullness or vividness 7. delivered with a swing of the arm <

a round blow

> 8. a. having full or unimpeded resonance or tone ; sonorous b. pronounced with rounded lips ; labialized 9. of or relating to handwriting predominantly curved rather than angular • roundness noun II. adverb Date: 14th century around III. noun Date: 14th century 1. a. something (as a circle, globe, or ring) that is round b. (1) a knot of people (2) a circle of things 2. round dance 1 3. a musical canon in which each part begins on the same note and is continuously repeated 4. a. a rung of a ladder or a chair b. a rounded molding 5. a. a circling or circuitous path or course b. motion in a circle or a curving path 6. a. a route or circuit habitually covered (as by a security guard or police officer) b. a series of similar or customary calls or stops <

making the rounds of his friends — Current Biography

>; especially a series of regularly scheduled professional calls on hospital patients made by a doctor or nurse — usually used in plural 7. a drink of liquor apiece served at one time to each person in a group <

I'll buy the next round

> 8. a sequence of recurring routine or repetitive actions or events <

went about my round of chores

> <

the newest round of talks

> 9. a period of time that recurs in a fixed pattern <

the daily round

> 10. a. one shot fired by a weapon or by each man in a military unit b. a unit of ammunition consisting of the parts necessary to fire one shot 11. a. a unit of action in a contest or game which comprises a stated period, covers a prescribed distance, includes a specified number of plays, or gives each player one turn b. a division of a tournament in which each contestant plays an opponent 12. a prolonged burst (as of applause) 13. a. a cut of meat (as beef) especially between the rump and the lower leg — see beef illustration b. a slice of food <

a round of bread

> 14. a rounded or curved part IV. verb Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. a. to make round b. (1) to make (the lips) round and protruded (as in the pronunciation of \ü\) (2) to pronounce with lip rounding ; labialize 2. a. go around b. to pass part of the way around 3. encircle, encompass 4. to bring to completion or perfection — often used with off or out 5. to express as a round number — often used with off <

11.3572 rounded off to two decimal places becomes 11.36

> intransitive verb 1. a. to become round, plump, or shapely b. to reach fullness or completion 2. to follow a winding course ; bend V. preposition Date: 1602 1. around 2. all during ; throughout <

round the year

> VI. transitive verb Etymology: alteration of Middle English rounen, from Old English rūnian; akin to Old English rūn mystery — more at rune Date: circa 1529 1. archaic whisper 2. archaic to speak to in a whisper