cycle

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
cycle/ˈsʌɪkl/

▶noun

• 1 a series of events that are regularly repeated in the same order.

  ■ the period of time taken to complete a single such series.

• 2 one complete sequence of changes associated with a recurring phenomenon such as an alternating current, wave, etc.

  ■ Physics a cycle per second; one hertz.

  ■ Ecology the movement of a simple substance through the soil, rocks, water, atmosphere, and living organisms of the earth: the carbon cycle.

• 3 a series of musical or literary works composed around a particular theme.

• 4 a bicycle.

  ■ a ride on a bicycle: a 112-mile cycle.

▶verb

• 1 ride a bicycle.

• 2 move in or follow a cycle of events.

– derivatives
cycler noun,
cycling noun,
cyclist noun.

– origin ME: from OFr., from late L. cyclus, from Gk kuklos ‘circle’.