recurring or revolving in cycles (of an organic compound) containing a closed saturated or unsaturated ring of atoms
See also heterocyclic, homocyclicarranged in whorls: cyclic petals having parts arranged in this way: cyclic flowers
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025
cy•clic /ˈsaɪklɪk, ˈsɪklɪk/USA pronunciation also ˈcy•clic•al, adj.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025- happening or occurring in cycles:cyclic events.
cy•clic
(sī′klik, sik′lik),USA pronunciation adj.
cy•clic•i•ty
(sī klis′i tē),USA pronunciation n.
- revolving or recurring in cycles; characterized by recurrence in cycles.
- of, pertaining to, or constituting a cycle or cycles.
- Chemistryof or pertaining to a compound that contains a closed chain or ring of atoms (contrasted with acyclic).
- Botany
- arranged in whorls, as the parts of a flower.
- (of a flower) having the parts so arranged.
- Mathematics
- pertaining to an algebraic system in which all the elements of a group are powers of one element.
- (of a set of elements) arranged as if on a circle, so that the first element follows the last.
- Greek kyklikós circular. See cycle, -ic
- Latin cyclicus
- 1785–95
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'cyclic' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
CREB
- Franck
- GTP
- acyclic
- adenosine cyclic monophosphate
- adenylate cyclase
- alicyclic
- aliphatic
- aromaticity
- bi-
- bicyclic
- cGMP
- camp
- carbocyclic compound
- chelate
- chlordane
- concyclic
- cyclase
- cycle
- cyclic AMP
- cyclic GMP
- cyclic shift
- cyclical
- cyclo-
- cycloaddition
- cyclohexanone
- cyclooctatetraene
- cyclopentadiene
- dioxane
- hetero
- heterocyclic
- homocyclic
- inositol
- irregular
- isocyclic
- lactam
- law of thermodynamics
- macrocyclic
- monocyclic
- muscone
- nortriptyline
- pacemaker
- paraldehyde
- polycyclic
- quinic acid
- quinone
- ring
- ring compound
- second messenger
- terpineol