circumstance

circumstance
circumstance (n.) early 13c., "conditions surrounding and accompanying an event," from O.Fr. circonstance "circumstance, situation," also literally, "outskirts" (Mod.Fr. circonstance), from L. circumstantia "surrounding condition," neut. pl. of circumstans (gen. circumstantis), prp. of circumstare "stand around," from circum "around" (see CIRCUM- (Cf. circum-)) + stare "to stand" from PIE root *sta- "to stand" (see STET (Cf. stet)).
The Latin word is a loan-translation of Gk. peristasis. Meaning "a person's surroundings, environment" is from mid-14c. Obsolete sense of "formality about an important event" (late 14c.) lingers in Shakespeare's phrase pomp and circumstance ("Othello" III, iii).

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • circumstance — cir·cum·stance n 1 a: a condition, fact, or event accompanying, conditioning, or determining another the circumstance s constituting fraud or mistake shall be stated Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 9(b) b: a piece of evidence that indicates …   Law dictionary

  • Circumstance — or circumstances can refer to: Rhetoric Circumstances (rhetoric) Legal terms Aggravating circumstance Attendant circumstance Exigent circumstance Extenuating circumstances Literature Circumstance (short story) Films Circumstance (film) Others… …   Wikipedia

  • circumstance — cir cum*stance (s[ e]r k[u^]m*st[a^]ns), n. [L. circumstantia, fr. circumstans, antis, p. pr. of circumstare to stand around; circum + stare to stand. See {Stand}.] 1. That which attends, or relates to, or in some way affects, a fact or event; an …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • circumstance — [sʉr′kəm stans΄, sʉr′kəmstəns] n. [OFr < L circumstantia, a standing around, condition < circumstare < circum, around + stare,STAND] 1. a fact or event accompanying another, either incidentally or as an essential condition or determining …   English World dictionary

  • circumstance — ► NOUN 1) a fact or condition connected with an event or action. 2) unforeseen events outside one s control: a victim of circumstance. 3) (circumstances) one s state of financial or material welfare. ● under (or in) the circumstances Cf. ↑under… …   English terms dictionary

  • Circumstance — Cir cum*stance, v. t. To place in a particular situation; to supply relative incidents. [1913 Webster] The poet took the matters of fact as they came down to him and circumstanced them, after his own manner. Addison. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • circumstance — *occurrence, event, incident, episode Analogous words: *item, detail, particular: factor, constituent, component, *element …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • circumstance — The debate about the merits of in the circumstances and under the circumstances continued for most of the 20c. The pedantic view is that since circumstances are, etymologically speaking, around (circum) us, we must be in them and not under them;… …   Modern English usage

  • circumstance — [n] situation, condition accident, action, adjunct, affair, article, case, cause, coincidence, concern, contingency, crisis, destiny, detail, doom, element, episode, event, exigency, fact, factor, fate, feature, fortuity, go, happening,… …   New thesaurus

  • circumstance — noun 1 (usually circumstances) facts/events that affect sth ADJECTIVE ▪ favourable/favorable ▪ The plan might work better with more favourable/favorable circumstances. ▪ adverse, difficult, dire, tra …   Collocations dictionary

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