ˈsɜː.kəm.skɹaɪb ˈsɝ.kəm.skɹaɪb restrict or confine within limits I limit you to two visits to the pub a day please confine your questions to the topic our actions are circumscribed by our biology, personality, and by the social and cultural context into which we are born draw a line around another circle is circumscribed about the square to draw a geometric figure around another figure so that the two are in contact but do not intersect