go (a)round in circles

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go (a)round in circles

To waste one's time and energy engaging in trivial, aimless, or futile activities and failing to make any progress as a result. I tried to get an outline drafted for my thesis, but my ideas were so jumbled in my head that I just kept going round in circles. The committee spent all afternoon trying to come up with a new PR proposal, but they went around in circles the whole time.

go (a)round in circles

1. Lit. to move over and over on a circular path. The model plane went around in circles until it ran out of fuel. The oxen went around in circles, pulling along a beam that was connected to the millstone.

2. Fig. to act in a confused and disoriented manner. I've been going around in circles all day. The children have been going around in circles, waiting for you to arrive.

3. Fig. to keep going over the same ideas or repeating the same actions, often resulting in confusion, without reaching a satisfactory decision or conclusion. We're just going round in circles discussing the problem. We need to consult someone else to get a new point of view. Fred's trying to find out what's happened but he's going round in circles. No one will tell him anything useful.

go around in circles

BRITISH, AMERICAN or

go round in circles

BRITISH

If someone goes around in circles or goes round in circles, they achieve little because they repeatedly deal with the same point or problem. This was one of those debates which simply went round in circles. My mind was going around in circles.

go round in circles

do something for a long time without achieving anything but purposeless repetition. informal

go round in ˈcircles

keep making the same points without making progress in a discussion, an argument, etc: This discussion is going round and round in circles. Let’s make a decision.

go around in circles, to

To keep trying but get absolutely nowhere. The idea behind this expression dates back to the time when it was first observed that persons who are lost tend to wander in circles and hence cannot ever reach their desired destination. Plato used the term figuratively (Charmides) for an argument that leads nowhere: “You drag me round and round in a circle.” See also run around in circles.