surround
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surround
- /səˈɹaʊnd/
Rhymes with -aʊnd
Where it comes from
From Middle English sourrounden (“to submerge, overflow”), from Middle French souronder, suronder, from Late Latin superundō, from super + undō (“to rise in waves”), from unda (“wave”).
verb surrounds · surrounding · surrounded
-
To encircle something or simultaneously extend in all directions.
The hovel stood in the centre of what had once been a vegetable garden, but was now a patch of rank weeds. Surrounding this, almost like a zareba, was an irregular ring of gorse and brambles, an unclaimed vestige of the original common.
Similar: bound
- To enclose or confine something on all sides so as to prevent escape. The lions surrounded the deer herd so they had no way to escape.
- To pass around; to travel about; to circumnavigate. to surround the world
noun surrounds
- Anything, such as a fence or border, that surrounds something. He drifted through the room, avoiding the furniture by instinct, closed the door that led to the passage, and only then flicked on his flashlight. It swept around the room, picking out a desk, a telephone, a wall of bookshelves, and a deep armchair, and finally settled on a handsome fireplace with a
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: encircle, environ, hem in, border, surroundings, environment, besiege, fence in, beleaguer, round, fence, palisade, wall, ring, circumvent, smother
Translations
Every language
verb to encircle something or simultaneously extend in all directions
| Español | envolver, cercar, rodear, arrodear |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 囲む kakomu, 取り巻く torimaku |
| 中文 | 包圍 /包围 bāowéi, 圍繞 /围绕 wéirào |
| हिन्दी | घेरना ghernā |
| Português | contornar, cercar |
| Français | entourer, cerner |
| Deutsch | umgeben, umringen |
| Italiano | circondare |
| Ελληνικά | περικλείω perikleío, περιβάλλω perivállo, περιτριγυρίζω peritrigyrízo |
| Română | înconjura |
| Русский | окружа́ть okružátʹ, окружи́ть okružítʹ |
| العربية | أَحَاطَ ʔaḥāṭa, حَفَّ ḥaffa, طَوَّقَ ṭawwaqa |
verb to enclose to prevent escape
| 日本語 | 囲む kakomu, 包囲する hōi suru |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 包圍 /包围 bāowéi |
| हिन्दी | घेरना ghernā |
| Português | cercar |
| Français | enceindre |
| Deutsch | umzingeln, umringen |
| Italiano | circondare, accerchiare, assediare |
| Ελληνικά | περικυκλώνω perikyklóno |
| Русский | окружа́ть okružátʹ, окружи́ть okružítʹ |
| Tiếng Việt | bao vây |
Talk about this word "surround." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/surround. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. surround. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/surround "surround." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/surround.Cite this
@misc{surround_2026,
title = {surround},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/surround},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
