circumvallate

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/sɜːkəmˈvæleɪt/

verb

To surround with, or as if with, a rampart.

“circumvallate papillae, near the base of the tongue”

OriginLatin circumvallare →
Scrabble 22
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Meanings

verbcircumvallate (third-person singular simple present circumvallates, present participle circumvallating, simple past and past participle circumvallated)

present singular third person circumvallates · participle present circumvallating · participle past circumvallated · past circumvallated

  1. transitiveTo surround with, or as if with, a rampart.

    The settlement is circumvallated by a stake-fence, so decayed that one may gain ingress at a dozen places.

    2004, David Mitchell, Cloud Atlas, London: Sceptre (Hodder and Stoughton), →ISBN
adjectivecircumvallate (not comparable)
  1. not comparableSurrounded with a wall; enclosed with a rampart.
  2. not comparableanatomySurrounded by a ridge or elevation.

    circumvallate papillae, near the base of the tongue

Origin

  1. Latincircumvallare
  2. Englishcircumvallate

From Latin circumvallare, from circum- + vallum (“rampart”).

More words from Latin

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

circumvallate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/circumvallate

MLA

“circumvallate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/circumvallate. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “circumvallate,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/circumvallate.

Source: circumvallate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.