cyclical

• HYPHEN: cy=cli=cal

CIDE DICTIONARY

cyclical, a. [Cf. F. cycluque, Gr. kykliko`s, fr. ky`klos See Cycle.].

•  Of or pertaining to a cycle or circle; moving in cycles; as, cyclical time.  Coleridge.  [1913 Webster]
•  Having atoms bonded to form a ring structure. Opposite of acyclic.

  "Used most commonly in respect to organic compounds."

  "[Narrower terms: bicyclic; heterocyclic; homocyclic, isocyclic]"  [WordNet 1.5]
•  Recurring in cycles{2}; having a pattern that repeats at approximately equal intervals; periodic. Opposite of noncyclic.

  "[Narrower terms: alternate(prenominal), alternating(prenominal); alternate(prenominal), every other(prenominal), every second(prenominal); alternating(prenominal), oscillating(prenominal); biyearly; circadian exhibiting 24-hour periodicity); circular; daily, diurnal; fortnightly, biweekly; hourly; midweek, midweekly; seasonal; semestral, semestrial; semiannual, biannual, biyearly; semiweekly, biweekly; weekly; annual, yearly; biennial; bimonthly, bimestrial; half-hourly; half-yearly; monthly; tertian, alternate(prenominal); triennial]"  [WordNet 1.5]
•  Marked by repeated cycles{2}.  [WordNet 1.5]

Cyclic chorus, the chorus which performed the songs and dances of the dithyrambic odes at Athens, dancing round the altar of Bacchus in a circle. -- Cyclic poets, certain epic poets who followed Homer, and wrote merely on the Trojan war and its heroes; -- so called because keeping within the circle of a single subject. Also, any series or coterie of poets writing on one subject. Milman.

OXFORD DICTIONARY

cyclical, adj. = CYCLIC 1.

Derivative

cyclically adv.

THESAURUS

cyclical

alternate, annular, annulate, annulose, articulated, atomatic, atomic, atomiferous, atomistic, beating, catenated, ceaseless, circinate, circling, circular, concatenated, connected, constant, continual, continued, continuing, continuous, coronary, crownlike, cyclic, cycloid, diatomic, dibasic, direct, discoid, disklike, endless, epochal, even, ever-recurring, every other, featureless, frequent, gapless, haunting, heteroatomic, heterocyclic, hexatomic, homocyclic, immediate, incessant, interminable, intermittent, isobaric, isochronal, isocyclic, isoteric, isotopic, joined, jointless, linked, measured, metronomic, monatomic, monotonous, never-ending, nonstop, oscillatory, pentatomic, perennial, periodic, periodical, pulsing, reappearing, reciprocal, recurrent, recurring, repetitive, returning, revenant, rhythmic, ring-shaped, ringlike, rotary, round, round-the-clock, rounded, running, seamless, seasonal, serial, serried, smooth, stable, steady, straight, subatomic, tetratomic, thematic, thick-coming, triatomic, tribasic, twenty-four-hour, ubiquitous, unbroken, unceasing, undifferentiated, undulant, undulatory, unending, uniform, unintermitted, unintermittent, unintermitting, uninterrupted, unrelieved, unremitting, unstopped, wavelike, wheeling

ROGET THESAURUS

cyclical

Periodicity

N regularity of recurrence, periodicity, intermittence, beat, oscillation, pulse, pulsation, rhythm, alternation, alternateness, alternativeness, alternity, bout, round, revolution, rotation, turn, say, anniversary, jubilee, centenary, catamenia, courses, menses, menstrual flux, rota, cycle, period, stated time, routine, days of the week, Sunday, Monday, months of the year, January, feast, fast, Christmas, Easter, New Year's day, Allhallows, Allhallowmas, All Saints' Day, All Souls', All Souls' Day, Ash Wednesday, bicentennial, birthday, bissextile, Candlemas, Dewali, groundhog day, Halloween, Hallowmas, Lady day, leap year, Midsummer day, Muharram, woodchuck day, St. Swithin's day, natal day, yearbook, yuletide, punctuality, regularity, steadiness, periodic, periodical, serial, recurrent, cyclical, rhythmical, recurring, intermittent, remittent, alternate, every other, hourly, diurnal, daily, quotidian, tertian, weekly, hebdomadal, hebdomadary, biweekly, fortnightly, bimonthly, catamenial, monthly, menstrual, yearly, annual, biennial, triennial, centennial, secular, paschal, lenten, regular, steady, punctual, regular as clockwork, periodically, at regular intervals, at stated times, at fixed established, at established periods, punctually, de die in diem, from day to day, day by day, by turns, in turn, in rotation, alternately, every other day, off and on, ride and tie, round and round.