itiner-, it-, -it

1. In mining, a level, or nearly level, access passage from the surface of a mine, used to excavate or to drain the main tunnel.
2. Etymology: from Latin aditus, "access"; from the past participle of ad1re, "to approach"; from ad-, "to, toward" + ire, "to go".

1. The typical atmosphere or mood of a place.
2. The surrounding area or environment: "The hand recorder picked up too many ambient noises."
3. Completely surrounding; encompassing: such as, the ambient air or the ambience of the neighborhood.

1. In the immediately surrounding area; encircling.
2. The environment; the encompassing area.

1. An earnest or eager desire for some type of achievement or distinction, as power, honor, fame, or wealth, and the willingness to strive for its attainment.
2. The object, state, or result desired or sought after: "To be a professional baseball player has been his life-time ambition."
3. A desire for exertion or activity; energy: "We had no ambition to go dancing this evening."

Word History

Even in ancient Rome candidates for public office went around soliciting votes. This activity was indicated by the word ambitio, "a going about, going around".

Ambitio was derived from ambire, "to go about", which in turn was formed from amb-, "about", and ire, "to go". Since this activity indicated a desire for honor or power, the word ambitio came to mean the desire for official honors.

This word was borrowed in French and English as ambition, and its meaning broadened to denote the earnest desire for achievement.

1. A strong feeling of wanting to be successful in life and to achieve great things.
2. An aim or objective that someone is trying to achieve.

1. A description of someone who has an earnest desire for some type of achievement or distinction; such as, power, honor, fame, or wealth, and the willingness to strive for its attainment.
2. In a manner showing the desire for personal advancement and may suggest equally a praiseworthy desire.

1. An act or instance of going or moving around.
2. A circular journey or one which begins and ends at the same place; around.
3. A roundabout journey or course.
4. A periodical journey from place to place, to perform certain duties, as by judges who hold court, ministers who preach, or salespeople covering a route.
5. The route followed, places visited, or districts covered by people who make journeys to perform their duties.
6. The line going around or bounding any area or object; the distance around an area or object.
7. The space within a bounding line or district; such as, the circuit of the valley.
8. In the electrical field, an electric circuit or the complete path of an electric current, including the generating apparatus, intervening resistors, or capacitors.
9. In telecommunications, a means of transmitting communication signals or messages, usually consisting of two channels for interactive communication.
10. A number of theaters, nightclubs, etc., controlled by the same owner or manager or visited in turn by the same entertainers or acting companies.

Etymology: From about 1382, Old French circuit, from Latin circuitus, "a going around", from the stem of circuire, circumire, "to go around", from circum, "around" plus -ire, "to go".

1. Being or taking a roundabout, lengthy course.
2. Roundabout; not direct; such as, a circuitous route; a circuitous argument.
3. Marked by obliqueness or indirection in speech or conduct.
4. Deviating from a straight course; "Her father took a circuitous route to avoid the rush-hour traffic."

In a circuit.

Circular, winding, indirect, meandering.