revolve

See also: revolvé

English

Etymology

From Middle English revolven (“to change direction”), borrowed from Old French revolver (“to reflect upon”), from Latin revolvere, present active infinitive of revolvō (“turn over, roll back, reflect upon”), from re- (“back”) + volvō (“roll”); see voluble, volve.

Verb

1. (Physical movement.)
   1. (transitive, now rare) To bring back into a particular place or condition; to restore. [from 15th c.]
   2. (transitive) To cause (something) to turn around a central point. [from 16th c.]
   3. (intransitive) To orbit a central point (especially of a celestial body). [from 17th c.]

      The Earth revolves around the sun.

   4. (intransitive) To rotate around an axis. [from 17th c.]

      The Earth revolves once every twenty-four hours.

      • 1915, G[eorge] A. Birmingham [pseudonym; James Owen Hannay], chapter I, in Gossamer, New York, N.Y.: George H. Doran Company, →OCLC:

        It is never possible to settle down to the ordinary routine of life at sea until the screw begins to revolve. There is an hour or two, after the passengers have embarked, which is disquieting and fussy.

   5. (intransitive) To move in order or sequence. [from 17th c.]

      The program revolves through all the queues before returning to the start.

2. (Mental activity.)
   1. (transitive, now rare) To ponder on; to reflect repeatedly upon; to consider all aspects of. [from 15th c.]
      • 1748, Samuel Richardson, Clarissa, Letter 82:

        These are the difficulties which arise to me on revolving this scheme […].

      • 1843, Thomas Carlyle, Past and Present, Bk.2, Ch.6, Monk Samson:

        He sits silent, revolving many thoughts, at the foot of St. Edmund’s Shrine.

   2. (transitive, obsolete) To read through, to study (a book, author etc.). [15th–19th c.]
      • 1671, John Milton, Paradise Regain'd:

        This having heard, strait I again revolv’d / The Law and Prophets.

Related terms

• revolution
• revolver
• the world doesn't revolve around you

Translations

to orbit a central point

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 圍繞／围绕 (zh), 围绕 (zh) (wéirào)

• Esperanto: rivolui
• Finnish: kiertää (fi)
• French: retourner (fr), tourner (fr)
• German: sich drehen (de)
• Greek: περιστρέφομαι (el) (peristréfomai)
• Hindi: घूमना (hi) (ghūmnā)
• Hungarian: kering (hu)
• Kurdish:

  Sorani:

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Pashto: څرخول (carxawəl), تاوول (ps) (tāwawəl)
• Polish: kręcić się (wokół)
• Portuguese: orbitar (pt)
• Quechua: muyuy
• Russian: верте́ться (ru) (vertétʹsja), крути́ться (ru) (krutítʹsja), враща́ться (ru) (vraščátʹsja)
• Spanish: girar (es) (alrededor de)
• Swedish: kretsa (sv)

to turn on an axis

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 旋轉／旋转 (zh), 旋转 (zh) (xuánzhuǎn), 運轉／运转 (zh) (yùnzhuǎn), 运转 (zh) (yùnzhuàn)

• Finnish: pyöriä (fi)
• French: retourner (fr), tourner (fr)
• Georgian: please add this translation if you can
• German: sich drehen (de)
• Greek: περιστρέφομαι (el) (peristréfomai)
• Italian: ruotare (it)
• Japanese: 回る (ja) (まわる, mawaru), 回転する (ja) (かいてんする, kaiten-suru)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Kurdish:

  Sorani:

• Latin: vertō (la)
• Pashto: تاوول (ps) (tāwawəl), اړول (ps) (arrawəl)
• Polish: wirować (pl), kręcić się
• Portuguese: girar (pt)
• Russian: враща́ться (ru) (vraščátʹsja)
• Spanish: rotar (es)
• Swedish: rotera (sv), snurra runt

to recur in cycles

• Greek: περιστρέφω (el) (peristréfo)
• Italian: ricorrere (it)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: повторя́ться (ru) (povtorjátʹsja)

to ponder on

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 考慮／考虑 (zh) (kǎolǜ), 考虑 (zh) (kǎolǜ)

• Finnish: pohtia (fi)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Greek: σκέπτομαι (el) (sképtomai)
• Russian: обду́мывать (ru) (obdúmyvatʹ)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} omwentelen (nl)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

Further reading

• “revolve”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “revolve”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

Noun

revolve (plural revolves)

1. The rotation of part of the scenery within a theatrical production.
2. (obsolete) A radical change; revolution.

Anagrams

• evolver

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Latin

Verb

(deprecated template usage) revolve

1. second-person singular present active imperative of revolvō

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Portuguese

Verb

revolve