circulation Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun the dissemination of copies of periodicals (as newspapers or magazines)
  2. noun movement through a circuit; especially the movement of blood through the heart and blood vessels
  3. noun (library science) the count of books that are loaned by a library over a specified period
  4. noun number of copies of a newspaper or magazine that are sold
    • by increasing its circulation the newspaper hoped to increase its advertising
  5. noun free movement or passage (as of cytoplasm within a cell or sap through a plant)
    • ocean circulation is an important part of global climate
    • a fan aids air circulation
  6. noun the spread or transmission of something (as news or money) to a wider group or area

WordNet

Cir`cu*la"tion noun
Etymology
L. circulatio: cf. F. circulation.
Definitions
  1. The act of moving in a circle, or in a course which brings the moving body to the place where its motion began.
    This continual circulation of human things. Swift.
  2. The act of passing from place to place or person to person; free diffusion; transmission.
    The true doctrines of astronomy appear to have had some popular circulation. Whewell.
  3. Currency; circulating coin; notes, bills, etc., current for coin.
  4. The extent to which anything circulates or is circulated; the measure of diffusion; as, the circulation of a newspaper.
  5. (Physiol.) The movement of the blood in the blood-vascular system, by which it is brought into close relations with almost every living elementary constituent. Also, the movement of the sap in the vessels and tissues of plants.

Webster 1913