How to Use circumstantial in a Sentence

circumstantial

adjective
  • The case against him is circumstantial.
  • The evidence is purely circumstantial.
  • And none of us can predict all the circumstantial changes that lie ahead.
    — Philip Chard, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 6 Oct. 2017
  • But that doesn't mean all of the party's woes are circumstantial.
    — Damon Linker, The Week, 1 Apr. 2022
  • His team set out to prove a circumstantial case that the killings were united by a common scheme and plan.
    — Christopher Goffard, Los Angeles Times, 27 Nov. 2024
  • And a lot of that stuff is circumstantial, is based on circumstances.
    — Luca Evans, Denver Post, 5 Sep. 2025
  • And circumstantial context does not even make the album a painful listen.
    — Natalie Maher, Harper's BAZAAR, 8 Sep. 2021
  • Hand was down after pitching in three straight – was circumstantial, Green said.
    — Jeff Sanders, sandiegouniontribune.com, 30 July 2017
  • The sample size of up-tempo plays was too small, and their success was partly circumstantial.
    — Rich Campbell, chicagotribune.com, 26 Nov. 2019
  • The case against Jones is mainly circumstantial.
    — Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 2 Feb. 2026
  • In the decades since his conviction and death sentence, much of the circumstantial case against him has fallen apart.
    — Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 4 Apr. 2026
  • The allegations against him, though circumstantial right now, are clear.
    — Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 1 Jan. 2026
  • No one knew it at the time, but that van would contain some important circumstantial evidence.
    — Peter Van Sant, CBS News, 27 May 2017
  • What ended up intriguing me most about both shows was circumstantial — the variables that came with where they were performed.
    — Maya Phillips, New York Times, 21 Oct. 2020
  • The government's case is weak and circumstantial.
    — Charlotte Phillipp, PEOPLE, 9 Nov. 2025
  • The government’s case is weak and circumstantial.
    — Ian Thomas, CNBC, 9 Nov. 2025
  • The evidence was circumstantial and could have happened after the fact.
    — Gregory Barber, Wired, 17 June 2021
  • With your feet on this foundation, tend to the circumstantial things, starting with the bridal shower you’ve been assigned.
    — Carolyn Hax, The Mercury News, 23 June 2019
  • With your feet on this foundation, tend to the circumstantial things, starting with the bridal shower you've been assigned.
    — Carolyn Hax, oregonlive.com, 22 June 2019
  • Although genetic hair loss is the primary cause, how and when your hair falls out is largely circumstantial.
    — Cristina Montemayor, Men's Health, 18 Aug. 2023
  • Just happened to be circumstantial.
    — Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 17 Feb. 2026
  • The evidence in the case was mostly circumstantial.
    — Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Nov. 2025
  • The evidence is circumstantial, and no proof affirms Watkins’ role.
    — Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2021
  • This is hanging in the balance because all of this evidence, this isn't just circumstantial anymore.
    — Fox News, 14 Sep. 2018
  • All that circumstantial pomp, all those game-day faces and manners, colliding with so much backstage intrigue, away from prying eyes.
    — Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 6 Jan. 2023
  • The prosecution’s case is circumstantial but seeks to prove that no one else could have made the mother and daughter disappear.
    — Nate Gartrell, The Mercury News, 14 Feb. 2025
  • While admitting that the case is circumstantial and some reasonable doubt remains, Pankoke et al.
    — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 1 Feb. 2022
  • Though her body hasn’t been found, in a March 9th hearing a judge ruled there was enough circumstantial evidence to hold him for trial.
    — Kevin Poulsen, WIRED, 23 Mar. 2007
  • In the decades since his conviction and death sentence, almost every pillar of the circumstantial case against him has crumbled.
    — Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 3 Apr. 2026
  • Both circumstantial and physical evidence led to his arrest after her body was found in the trunk of her car outside a vacant home last week.
    — CBS News, 17 July 2019

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'circumstantial.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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