central

¹

[sen-truhl]

adjective

1. of or forming the center.

   the central hut in the village.

2. in, at, or near the center.

   a central position.

3. constituting something from which other related things proceed or upon which they depend.

   a central office.

4. principal; chief; dominant.

   the play's central character.

   Synonyms: primary, leading, key, main, major

5. Anatomy, Zoology.

   1. of or relating to the central nervous system.

   2. of or relating to the centrum of a vertebra.

6. Phonetics.,  (of a speech sound) produced with the tongue articulating neither expressly forward nor in the back part of the mouth, as any of the sounds of lull.

7. Physics.,  (of a force) directed to or from a fixed point.

noun

1. (formerly)

   1. a main telephone exchange.

   2. a telephone operator at such an exchange.

central

²

[sen-trahl, sen-trahl]

noun

plural

centrals ,

plural

centrales .

1. (in Spanish America and the Philippines) a mill for crushing cane into raw sugar.

Central

³

[sen-truhl]

noun

1. a region in central Scotland. 1,016 sq. mi. (2,631 sq. km).

central

/ ˈsɛntrəl /

adjective

1. in, at, of, from, containing, or forming the centre of something

   the central street in a city

   the central material of a golf ball

2. main, principal, or chief; most important

   the central cause of a problem

3. 1. of or relating to the central nervous system

   2. of or relating to the centrum of a vertebra

4. of, relating to, or denoting a vowel articulated with the tongue held in an intermediate position halfway between the positions for back and front vowels, as for the a of English soda

5. (of a force) directed from or towards a point

6. informal,  (immediately postpositive) used to describe a place where a specified thing, quality, etc is to be found in abundance

   nostalgia central

Other Word Forms

• centrally adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of central¹

First recorded in 1620–30; from Latin centrālis, “centrally located,” equivalent to centr(um) center + -ālis -al ¹

Origin of central²

First recorded in 1885–90; from Latin American Spanish, special use of Spanish central central ¹

Example Sentences

The model mirrors China's WeChat - central to daily life but also a tool of censorship and surveillance.

From BBC

Secondly, it also ensures that central areas behind the ball are occupied by good defenders, providing structural and individual defensive quality.

From BBC

Officials project that the elevated roadways entering the central terminal area of LAX will be completed before the 2028 Olympics.

From Los Angeles Times

And Beautiful Eagle Creek became a central part of the program’s mythos.

From Los Angeles Times

You have given your all to making the Labour Government a success and you have been a central art of our plan to make Britain fairer for working families.

From BBC

Related Words

• basic 
• essential 
• fundamental 
• important 
• key 
• paramount 
• pivotal 
• significant