I. Lit.

A. In gen., to be around (a thing), to encircle, encompass, surround (rare): quibus succensis circumventi flammā exanimantur homines, Caes. B. G. 6, 16; cf.: donec ignium jactu circumveniretur, Tac. A. 15, 11; 15, 38: illum frequentia ingens circumvenit cum plausu, Petr. 92, 8: Cocytos sinu labens circumvenit atro, Verg. A. 6, 132: omnium operum magnitudinem circumveniunt cavernae ingentes, Curt. 5, 1, 28: Rhenus insulas circumveniens, flowing around, Tac. A. 2, 6: planities locis paulo superioribus circumventa, Sall. J. 68, 2: rami, quos comprehensos manus possit circumvenire, to grasp, Col. 5, 9, 2; cf. id. 4, 29, 10; Val. Fl. 1, 400; Petr. 114: singulas urbes, to go around from one city to another, Sall. J. 88, 4 Dietsch.—Far more freq. (esp. in the histt.),

B. Specif., to surround in a hostile manner, to encompass, beset, invest: ex itinere nostros latere aperto aggressi circumvenere, Caes. B. G. 1, 25: ne per insidias ab eo circumveniretur, id. ib. 1, 42: consulem, Nep. Hann. 4, 3: aciem. Curt. 5, 13, 30: montem opere, Caes. B. C. 3, 97: multos ab tergo, Sall. J. 97, 5: cuncta moenia exercitu, id. ib. 57, 2; cf. id. ib. 76, 2: legio circumventa, Liv. 10, 26, 9; cf. id. 10, 2, 11; Tac. A. 3, 74: armis regiam, id. ib. 12, 50 fin.; cf. id. ib. 1, 25; 12, 16: cerva circumventa lupis, Stat. Th. 5, 165: hostili custodiā, Sen. Ep. 9, 6.—

II. Trop.

A. To encompass, beset, oppress, distress, afflict, overthrow: circumventus morbo, exilio atque inopiā, Enn. ap. Cic. de Or. 58, 218; cf. id. Fin. 4, 23, 62 (Trag. v. 42 Vahl.); Ter. Hec. prol. alt. 46: quasi committeret contra legem, quo quis judicio circumveniretur, Cic. Brut. 12, 48; cf. id. Tusc. 1, 41, 98; Quint. 5, 13, 32; 6, 2, 31: aliquem per arbitrum circumvenire, i. e. to lay hold of, Cic. Rosc. Com. 9, 25: jam te non Siculi, non aratores circumveniunt, id. Verr. 2, 1, 37, 93: te a Siciliae civitatibus circumveniri atque opprimi dicis? id. ib. 2, 4, 8, 17: potentis alicujus opibus circumveniri urgerique, id. Off. 2, 14, 51: ut neque tenuiores proper humilitatem circumveniantur, id. ib. 2, 24, 85; so, falsis criminibus, Sall. C. 34, 2: omnibus necessitudinibus, id. ib. 21, 3; cf. Tac. A. 1, 13: his difficultatibus, Sall. J. 7, 1: odio accolarum, simul domesticis discordiis, Tac. A. 12, 29: securitate pacis et belli malo, id. H. 2, 12: testimonio, id. ib. 4, 10: multa senem circumveniunt incommoda, Hor. A. P. 169.—

B. (Cf. circumeo, II. B.) To circumvent, deceive, cheat, defraud one (syn.: decipio, fraudo, fallo): circumventum esse innocentem pecuniā, Cic. Clu. 29, 79: an placeret, fenore circumventa plebs, Liv. 6, 36, 12: ignorantiam alicujus, Dig. 17, 1, 29: aliquem falso testimonio, ib. 42, 1, 33: non sine calliditate circumventus, ib. 43, 28, 3; cf. ib. 23, 3, 12.—

2. In the jurists, to evade, to violate by evading: leges, Dig. 30, 123, 1; 1, 3, 29: voluntatem defuncti, ib. 29, 4, 4: orationem, ib. 2, 15, 8; 1, 3, 29.—

C. To obtain possession of, to grasp: omne stagnum, Plin. Pan. 50, 1.