centre

[ sen-ter ]

/ ˈsɛn tər /

noun, verb, cen·tred, cen·tring. Chiefly British.

center.

Words nearby centre

centralia, centralism, centrality, centralization, centralize, centre, centre bit, centre forward, centre half, centre of curvature, centre of gravity

Definition for centre (2 of 2)

center

[ sen-ter ]

/ ˈsɛn tər /

noun

Geometry. the middle point, as the point within a circle or sphere equally distant from all points of the circumference or surface, or the point within a regular polygon equally distant from the vertices.

a point, pivot, axis, etc., around which anything rotates or revolves: The sun is the center of the solar system.

the source of an influence, action, force, etc.: the center of a problem.

a point, place, person, etc., upon which interest, emotion, etc., focuses: His family is the center of his life.

a principal point, place, or object: a shipping center.

a building or part of a building used as a meeting place for a particular group or having facilities for certain activities: a youth center; The company has a complete recreation center in the basement.

an office or other facility providing a specific service or dealing with a particular emergency: a flood-relief center; a crisis center.

a person, thing, group, etc., occupying the middle position, especially a body of troops.

the core or middle of anything: chocolate candies with fruit centers.

a store or establishment devoted to a particular subject or hobby, carrying supplies, materials, tools, and books as well as offering guidance and advice: a garden center; a nutrition center.

shopping center.

(usually initial capital letter) Government.

the part of a legislative assembly, especially in continental Europe, that sits in the center of the chamber, a position customarily assigned to members of the legislature who hold political views intermediate between those of the Right and Left.
the members of such an assembly who sit in the Center.
the political position of persons who hold moderate views.
politically moderate persons, taken collectively; Centrists; middle-of-the-roaders: Unfortunately, his homeland has always lacked a responsible Center.

Football.

a lineman who occupies a position in the middle of the line and who puts the ball into play by tossing it between his legs to a back.
the position played by this lineman.

Basketball.

a player who participates in a center jump.
the position of the player in the center of the court, where the center jump takes place at the beginning of play.

Ice Hockey. a player who participates in a face-off at the beginning of play.

Baseball. center field.

Physiology. a cluster of nerve cells governing a specific organic process: the vasomotor center.

Mathematics.

the mean position of a figure or system.
the set of elements of a group that commute with every element of the group.

Machinery.

a tapered rod, mounted in the headstock spindle (live center) or the tailstock spindle (dead center) of a lathe, upon which the work to be turned is placed.
one of two similar points on some other machine, as a planing machine, enabling an object to be turned on its axis.
a tapered indentation, in a piece to be turned on a lathe, into which a center is fitted.

verb (used with object)

to place in or on a center: She centered the clock on the mantelpiece.

to collect to or around a center; focus: He centered his novel on the Civil War.

to determine or mark the center of: A small brass star centered the tabletop.

to adjust, shape, or modify (an object, part, etc.) so that its axis or the like is in a central or normal position: to center the lens of a telescope; to center the work on a lathe.

to place (an object, part, etc.) so as to be equidistant from all bordering or adjacent areas.

Football. snap(def 21).

to pass (a basketball, hockey puck, etc.) from any place along the periphery toward the middle of the playing area.

verb (used without object)

to be at or come to a center.

to come to a focus; converge; concentrate (followed by at, about, around, in, or on): The interest of the book centers specifically on the character of the eccentric hero. Political power in the town centers in the position of mayor.

to gather or accumulate in a cluster; collect (followed by at, about, around, in, or on): Shops and municipal buildings center around the city square.

Also especially British, cen·tre.

Origin of center

1325–75; variant of Middle English centre < Latin centrum < Greek kéntron needle, spur, pivoting point in drawing a circle, derivative of kenteîn to sting

SYNONYMS FOR center

1 See middle.

ANTONYMS FOR center

1 edge.

usage note for center

28. Although sometimes condemned for alleged illogicality, the phrases center about and center around have appeared in edited writing for more than a century to express the sense of gathering or collecting as if around a center: The objections center around the question of fiscal responsibility.

OTHER WORDS FROM center

cen·ter·a·ble, adjective cen·ter·less, adjective su·per·cen·ter, noun

Example sentences from the Web for centre

The position the Donetsk photograph published in Paris Match was taken is just before the red arrow in the centre of the map.

MH17 Missile Can't Hide From These Internet Sleuths |Eliot Higgins |August 2, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
“What the dossier claims is staggering,” Michele De Luca, director of the Centre for Regenerative Medicine, told Science Insider.

‘Hero’ Doc Accused of Harvesting Stem Cells in Dirty Basements |Barbie Latza Nadeau |April 29, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
German Hans Zollner leads the Centre for Child Protection at the Institute of Psychology of the Pontifical Gregorian University.

Pope Francis Names His Anti-Abuse Team |Barbie Latza Nadeau |March 23, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
“Warsaw was once the centre of my universe,” recalled Milchberg late in life.

The Week in Death: Irving Milchberg, the Teenage Gunrunner of the Warsaw Ghetto |The Telegraph |March 1, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

One Washington lobbyist who has worked on the ECFMU account in the past said he became uneasy with the Centre in 2012.

Ukraine’s D.C. Lobbyists in Disarray as Dictator Flees |Eli Lake |February 25, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
In carving a ham, begin not quite in the centre, but a little nearer to the hock.

Directions for Cookery, in its Various Branches |Eliza Leslie
In the centre of this plain was another large koppie of which the river Ukufa, or Death, washed one side.

Smith and the Pharaohs, and Other Tales |Henry Rider Haggard
A seaside place, as a centre for motoring, walking or bicycling, is by its very essence one-sided or even less.

Through East Anglia in a Motor Car |J. E. (James Edmund) Vincent
Here there is a plane of symmetry perpendicular to the hexad axis; there is also a centre of symmetry.

Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 7 |Various
Tyre was the great commercial centre of the world at that time, as Babylon was the centre of imperial power.

Beacon Lights of History, Volume II |John Lord

British Dictionary definitions for centre (1 of 3)

centre

US center

/ (ˈsɛntə) /

noun

geometry

the midpoint of any line or figure, esp the point within a circle or sphere that is equidistant from any point on the circumference or surface
the point within a body through which a specified force may be considered to act, such as the centre of gravity

the point, axis, or pivot about which a body rotates

a point, area, or part that is approximately in the middle of a larger area or volume

a place at which some specified activity is concentrated a shopping centre

a person or thing that is a focus of interest

a place of activity or influence a centre of power

a person, group, policy, or thing in the middle

(usually capital) politics

a political party or group favouring moderation, esp the moderate members of a legislative assembly
(as modifier)a Centre-Left alliance

physiol any part of the central nervous system that regulates a specific function respiratory centre

a bar with a conical point upon which a workpiece or part may be turned or ground

a punch mark or small conical hole in a part to be drilled, which enables the point of the drill to be located accurately

sport

a player who plays in the middle of the forward line
the act or an instance of passing the ball from a wing to the middle of the field, court, etc

basketball

the position of a player who jumps for the ball at the start of play
the player in this position

archery

the ring around the bull's eye
a shot that hits this ring

verb

to move towards, mark, put, or be at a centre

(tr) to focus or bring together to centre one's thoughts

(intr often foll by on) to have as a main point of view or theme the novel centred on crime

(tr) to adjust or locate (a workpiece or part) using a centre

(intr; foll by on or round) to have as a centre

(tr) sport to pass (the ball) into the middle of the field or court

Word Origin for centre

C14: from Latin centrum the stationary point of a compass, from Greek kentron needle, from kentein to prick

British Dictionary definitions for centre (2 of 3)

Centre

noun

the Centre (ˈsɛntə) the sparsely inhabited central region of Australia

(French sɑ̃trə) a region of central France: generally low-lying; drained chiefly by the Rivers Loire, Loir, and Cher

British Dictionary definitions for centre (3 of 3)

center

/ (ˈsɛntə) /

noun, verb

the US spelling of centre

Medical definitions for centre

center

[ sĕn′tər ]

n.

A point or place in the body that is equally distant from its sides or outer boundaries; the middle.

A group of neurons in the central nervous system that control a particular function.

Idioms and Phrases with centre

center

In addition to the idiom beginning with center

center of attraction, the

also see:

front and center

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

centre

noun, verb, cen·tred, cen·tring. Chiefly British.

Words nearby centre

Definition for centre (2 of 2)

noun

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

Origin of center

SYNONYMS FOR center

ANTONYMS FOR center

usage note for center

OTHER WORDS FROM center

Example sentences from the Web for centre

British Dictionary definitions for centre (1 of 3)

US center

noun

verb

Word Origin for centre

British Dictionary definitions for centre (2 of 3)

noun

British Dictionary definitions for centre (3 of 3)

noun, verb

Medical definitions for centre

n.

Idioms and Phrases with centre