circular
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circular
A letter, email, or notice sent to a larger group of people in order to inform everyone about something at the same time.
Die Geschäftsleitung hat ein Rundschreiben an alle Mitarbeiter verschickt, um die neuen Bürozeiten bekannt zu geben.
Management sent a circular to all employees to announce the new office hours.
The word is made up of 'rund' (round/around) and 'das Schreiben' (the letter/writing). The idea behind it is that a message 'die Runde macht' (makes the rounds), meaning it is distributed to many people at the same time.
Ein Rundschreiben geht an alle Mitglieder des Vereins.
A circular goes out to all members of the club.
'Rundschreiben' (circular) is often combined with verbs that describe sending and receiving information. Typical ones are: 'ein Rundschreiben versenden' (to send out a circular), 'verschicken' (to send), 'erhalten' (to receive), or 'verfassen' (to write/draft).
Alle Mitarbeiter haben gestern ein Rundschreiben der Personalabteilung erhalten.
All employees received a circular from the HR department yesterday.
This term is mainly used in the formal context of offices, authorities, clubs, or universities. In private settings, people are more likely to speak of a 'Gruppennachricht' (group message) or 'Rundmail' (group email/mass email).
Per Rundschreiben wurden alle Studierenden über die neuen Termine informiert.
All students were informed about the new dates by circular.
newsletter
Both words can refer to information sent regularly to many people. A Newsletter is usually aimed at subscribers and provides information about a specific topic, while a Rundschreiben is sent more formally to a defined distribution list. Use Newsletter for the subscribable format and Rundschreiben for a notice sent to everyone affected.
Die Schule verschickt ein Rundschreiben an alle Eltern des Jahrgangs.
The school sends a circular to all the parents in the year group.
Die Schule verschickt ihren Newsletter monatlich per E-Mail an interessierte Abonnenten.
The school sends its newsletter by email to interested subscribers every month.
