Words / C1

SIKL-ikl/ˈsɪklɪkl/

Cyclical means happening in repeated cycles: cyclical unemployment, a cyclical pattern. Cyclic is a shorter variant, more scientific. Circular is about shape or a circular argument (going nowhere). Seasonal is one kind of cycle. Do not call a one-off boom cyclical unless it has happened in a pattern before.

Meaning

Happening in repeated cycles rather than as a one-off change.

Examples

• “Unemployment here is cyclical, rising in winter.”
• “Demand for heating is cyclical; it is not a permanent collapse in April.”
• “A cyclical model of the economy is not the same as a circular definition.”

Good to know

Repeating in cycles. Variant: cyclic. Shape/bad argument: circular. One kind: seasonal. Not a single spike.

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