circumscription
UK /ˌsɜː.kəmˈskɹɪp.ʃən/ · US /ˌsɝ.kəmˈskɹɪp.ʃən/ noun
Forms circumscriptions
- noun The act of circumscribing or the quality of being circumscribed.
- noun Anything that circumscribes or a circumscribed area.
- noun (taxonomy) The definition of what does and does not belong to a given taxon, from a particular taxonomic viewpoint or taxonomic system. “The circumscription in the APG system of the family Malvaceae includes the former families Bombacaceae, Sterculiaceae and Tiliaceae.”
- noun An electoral district; used often in texts treating electoral systems in Romance countries.
Etymology
L. circumscriptio. See Circumscribe.
Webster’s 1913
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “circumscription”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details