circulating library

/'sə:kjuleitiɳ'laibrəri/

Thân thiện

A woman borrows a book from the circulating library.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • A library that lends books for use outside its premises: A "circulating library" is a library, often a subscription-based or commercial establishment historically, whose primary function is to allow members or subscribers to borrow books and take them away to read elsewhere, rather than only consulting them on-site.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • In the 19th century, many people relied on a circulating library for their reading material.
  • The new circulating library in town has a vast collection of modern novels available for loan.

Advanced Usage

• The term "circulating library" is often used in a historical context to describe private, for-profit lending libraries that were common before the widespread establishment of free public libraries.
  • Jane Austen's characters often borrowed novels from a circulating library.

Variants and Related Words

• Lending library (n): A more modern and general synonym for a library that allows books to be borrowed.
  • The public library also functions as a lending library.

Synonyms

• Lending library: A library that permits the borrowing of books.
• Subscription library: A library supported by members' fees, often historically synonymous with a circulating library.

Học thuật

Noun

1. library that provides books for use outside the building

Từ đồng nghĩa

• lending library