round robin
Syllables: round rob·in/ˌɹaʊnd ˈɹɒbɪn/US/ˌɹaʊn(d)ˈɹɑbən/
round robin noun: a document (usually containing a complaint or petition) originally with the signatures arranged in a circle, and later often alphabetically, to disguise the order of signing and to indicate that the signatories are collectively responsible for it.
Noun
round robin (plural round robins)
- A document (usually containing a complaint or petition) originally with the signatures arranged in a circle, and later often alphabetically, to disguise the order of signing and to indicate that the signatories are collectively responsible for it.
- This being approved of, it vvas unanimouſly reſolved on, and the undervvritten Petition dravvn up and ſigned by the vvhole Company in the Manner of vvhat they call a Round Robin, that is, the Names vvere vvrit in a Circle, to avoid all Appearance of Pre-eminence, and leaſt any Perſon ſhould be...1724, Charles Johnson [pseudonym], “Of Captain [Henry] Anstis, and His Crew”, in A General History of the Pyrates, […], 2nd edition, London: Printed for, and sold by T. Warner, […], →OCLC, pages...
- [T]he Method uſed by Sailors vvhen they mutiny, by ſigning their Names in an orbicular manner, vvhich they call, a round Robin; vvhence the Phraſe, VVe have him as round as a Robin.1731 June 16 (Gregorian calendar), “A View of the Weekly Disputes and Essays in this Month. [Craftsman, Sat. June 5. No. 257.]”, in Sylvanus Urban [pseudonym; Edward Cave], editor, The Gentleman’s...
- A letter which is reproduced and sent to several people; specifically, one containing personal news sent at a particular time of year, often Christmas; a circular letter.
- A letter or piece of writing which is circulated among members of a group, to which each person makes a contribution before sending it to another person; also, a packet of letters circulated regularly in a fixed order among a group (often family members), whereby each person replaces their previous contribution with a new letter, and then sends the packet to the next recipient.
- a round-robin novel
- Synonyms:
- circle letter
- A form of trading involving a packet of items which is circulated among members of a group, whereby each person take the items they want and replaces them with items of similar value, and then sends the packet to the next recipient.
- Stamp collectors sometimes exchange stamps with each other using a round-robin method.
- A long, often tedious, list or piece of writing; a laundry list, a litany.
- Think only what your feelings would be if you heard a wretch deliberately perjure himself in support of an infamous accusation, so remote from all fact, so smooth and homogeneous in its untruth, such a round robin of mere lies, that you knew not which to begin with?1816, S[amuel] T[aylor] Coleridge, “[Appendix, Containing Comments and Essays.] Appendix C.”, in The Statesman’s Manual; or The Bible the Best Guide to Political Skill and Foresight: […], London: […]...
- A method of making use of several similar subsystems, assigning tasks to each of them in turn (for example, sending data to a destination down several communication links in turn to achieve greater combined speed).
- A form of bet on the full set of possible combinations from a group of events, racehorses, teams, etc., such as the outcomes A and B, B and C, and A and C from a group consisting of A, B, and C.
- The MIDI technique of using different sampled versions of the same sound for successive notes, to avoid an unnaturally repetitive effect.
- If you load a saxophone sound, for example, the library gives you the entire range of the instrument, with round robins, and a depth of velocity-triggered samples for each note.2019 August 15, L. J. Howard, Tommy Gordon, “Computing Resources (CPU) Tips”, in Music Production Tips, Tricks, and Secrets, [United States]: Fretboard Media Group, →ISBN
- A method of dividing loot among a party of players by having the game assign loot, or an enemy corpse to loot, to each player in turn.
- A small pancake.
- A group activity in which the members take turns to perform an action.
- Round robins are undertaken for a variety of motives: (1) to accumulate data that may be used to determine the precision and accuracy of a new or modified test procedure, (2) to recheck an established procedure to ascertain whether there has been a deterioration in the accuracy arising from...1963 January, W[illiam] J[ohn] Youden, “Ranking Laboratories by Round-robin Tests”, in Harry H. Ku, editor, Precision Measurement and Calibration: Selected NBS Papers on Statistical Concepts and...
- The value of interlaboratory tests or round robins has been significant in the FFTF programs. They have shown biases, problems with contamination from containers, and the need for standards. This information has led to prompt correction of problems; whereas, a single laboratory might have...1975 March, Glenn R. Waterbury [et al.], “Nuclear Materials (Fuels)”, in Richard W. Seward, editor, Standard Reference Materials and Meaningful Measurements: Proceedings of the 6th Materials Research...
- The part of a tournament in which every player or team competes against each of the others in turn.
- At Tokyo's Yoyogi National Gymnasium, Japan defended well and attacked with ease, facing only moderate resistance in a 25-9, 25-19, 25-15 victory in the eight-team round robin, with two berths in next year's Paris Olympics up for grabs.2023 September 17, “Japan’s women victorious in Olympic volleyball qualifying opener”, in The Japan Times, Tokyo: The Japan Times, Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 30 May 2024
- Sixteen men and sixteen women will compete for their respective gold medals in the inaugural edition of Olympic breaking. Each of the competitions are a one-day tournament that begins with round-robin competitions before quarterfinal and semifinal stages that lead into the medal events.2024 June 24, Jack McKessy, “Breakdancing is making its Olympics debut at Paris 2024. Here’s when you can watch”, in USA Today, McLean, Va.: Gannett Co., →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on...
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- The consecrated host used in the Eucharist.
- [T]he Sacrament of the Altar, is nothing elſe but a piece of bread, or a little predie Round-Robin.1659, Thomas Fuller, “The Fifth Book. Relating to the Time of King Henry the Eighth.”, in The Appeal of Iniured Innocence: Unto the Religious Learned and Ingenious Reader: In a Controversie betwixt...
- A small ruff worn around the neck.
- In the dayes of King Arthur of Bradley, and his four hundred forty ſixe Elders of the Round Table, the firſt men that ever vvore Round-Robins, there lived a Paſtor vvhoſe Fame (you all have had a ſpice of) called Cornelius, […] it vvas his Fate by the heat of overmuch Devotion, to conclude his...[1642] July 8 (Gregorian calendar), T. J. [i.e., Jeremy Taylor], An Apology for Private Preaching. […], [London]: […] R. Wood, T. Wilson, and E. Christopher, →OCLC, signature [A3], recto
- A rim attached to the end of an axle of a horse carriage to prevent dirt from obstructing the axle's rotation; also, a loop from which a component of a horse carriage (such as a pole or spring) is suspended.
- Cut′too-plate. A hood above the nave or hub of a vehicle, to prevent the street mud from falling upon the axle and becoming ground in between the axle-box and spindle. Otherwise called a dirt-board, or round robbin. It is attached to the axle or bolster.[1877, Edward H[enry] Knight, “Cut′too-plate”, in Knight’s American Mechanical Dictionary. […], New York, N.Y.: Hurd and Houghton […], →OCLC, page 669, column 1
- Any of various marine fish of the genus Decapterus often called scads which have a body with an almost round cross section, especially the round scad (Decapterus punctatus); also, any of various other fish regarded as having a somewhat round shape.
- The fishing frog or sea devil (Lophius piscatorius), a species of monkfish.
- Any of various hedgerow plants with pink flowers, especially a red campion (Silene dioica).
- A chiefly derogatory nickname for a man.
- A freshwater sunfish native to eastern North America, either the pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus) or the redbreast sunfish (Lepomis auritus).
round robin meaning in Tamil
round robin in Tamil
- தொடர் சுழல்முறை
Examples of round robin in a sentence
- Men all in a panic of fear; sent a round robin, asking to have double watch, as they fear to be alone.1897, Bram Stoker, “Cutting from ‘The Dailygraph,’ 8 August (Pasted in Mina Murray’s Journal.) From a Correspondent.”, in Dracula, New...
- The value of interlaboratory tests or round robins has been significant in the FFTF programs.1975 March, Glenn R. Waterbury [et al.], “Nuclear Materials (Fuels)”, in Richard W. Seward, editor, Standard Reference Materials and...
Synonyms of round robin
- circle letter
Forms of round robin
| plural | round robins |
|---|---|
| alternative form | round-robin |
Origin of round robin
From round (adjective) + robin. Sense 1 (“senses relating to something with a round shape, or which goes around”) is connected with the word round, while sense 2 (“senses relating to people, animals, or plants”) is connected with some English regional senses of the word robin where it is used in the names of various fish and plants which are not related to the red-breasted bird. However, apart from the alliteration, it is not clear why the two words came to be linked together in compounds. It is possible that the term was first used to refer to sense 1.13.1 (“consecrated host”) which appears to be the earliest attested sense, and then extended to other senses either having the sense of round or robin. Alternatively, it has been suggested that the term is a corruption of French ruban rond (literally “round ribbon”), referring to the practice in 17th-century France of signing on ribbons which were then attached to petitions of grievances in a circular manner: see sense 1.1. However, this etymology does not explain the senses of the term unrelated to a signed document.
Words formed from round robin
- round robineer
- round-robining
- round-robin story
Words that rhyme with round robin
Questions about round robin
- What does round robin mean?
- Round robin means a document (usually containing a complaint or petition) originally with the signatures arranged in a circle, and later often alphabetically, to disguise the order of signing and to indicate that the signatories are collectively responsible for it.
- What is round robin in Tamil?
- Round robin in Tamil is தொடர் சுழல்முறை. See Round robin meaning in Tamil.
- How do you use round robin in a sentence?
- Men all in a panic of fear; sent a round robin, asking to have double watch, as they fear to be alone.
- What part of speech is round robin?
- Round robin is a noun.
- How do you pronounce round robin?
- Round robin is pronounced /ˌɹaʊnd ˈɹɒbɪn/ (UK).
- What is the plural of round robin?
- The plural of round robin is round robins.
Words near round robin in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: round robin (page history and authors); round robin (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-round robin.wav.
Cite this entry: “round robin.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/round_robin. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.