Meaning & use
circle the wagons
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Meanings
phraseidiomfigurativeinformal
To come together defensively to protect yourselves against criticism or attack from outside.
Grammar: A fixed idiom: the verb changes (circled, circling) but the rest stays the same.
Patterns
- circle the wagons around someone
- circle the wagons against something
When the scandal broke, the company circled the wagons and refused to comment.
The family circled the wagons around their youngest brother after the news report.
Fans circled the wagons whenever critics attacked the team.
phraseidiom
To arrange covered wagons in a ring for protection, as settlers once did when traveling across open land.
Grammar: Literal and historical use, seen in stories of pioneers.
The pioneers circled the wagons for the night near the river.
In old films, settlers circle the wagons when attackers appear.
At dusk, the travelers circled the wagons and lit the fire in the center.
Word forms
| past | circled the wagons |
|---|---|
| -ing form | circling the wagons |
Common combinations
- circle the wagons against criticism
- The board circled the wagons against criticism from shareholders.
- time to circle the wagons
- With rivals closing in, it is time to circle the wagons.
- circle the wagons around
- Friends circled the wagons around her during the investigation.
- circling the wagons
- The party is circling the wagons after the election loss.
Synonyms and how they differ
- close ranks
- Close ranks is the closest equivalent, but it comes from soldiers standing together and is a little more neutral.
- batten down the hatches
- Batten down the hatches means prepare for trouble, whereas circle the wagons stresses uniting against attackers.
- band together
- Band together describes joining forces for any purpose, not necessarily in defense.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: circle the wagons or on the bandwagon?
circle the wagons vs on the bandwagon
Jumping on the bandwagon means joining a popular trend, while circling the wagons means defending against threats.
Practice
After the newspaper attacked the mayor, his staff circled the wagons. What did they do?
Choose one answer.
Circling the wagons means uniting defensively against criticism. Resigning, leaving or apologizing would not match the idiom.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “circle the wagons”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.