central
adjective
of or forming the center.
central
1 American
[sen-truhl]
/ ˈsɛn trəl /
adjective
-
of or forming the center.
the central hut in the village.
-
in, at, or near the center.
a central position.
-
constituting something from which other related things proceed or upon which they depend.
a central office.
-
the play's central character.
-
Anatomy, Zoology.
-
of or relating to the central nervous system.
-
of or relating to the centrum of a vertebra.
-
-
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.
-
Physics. (of a force) directed to or from a fixed point.
noun
central
2
American
[sen-trahl, sen-trahl]
/ sɛnˈtrɑl, sɛnˈtrɑl /
noun
-
centrals,
plural
-
centrales
plural
Central
3
American
[sen-truhl]
/ ˈsɛn trəl /
noun
central
British
/ ˈsɛntrəl /
adjective
-
in, at, of, from, containing, or forming the centre of something
the central street in a city
the central material of a golf ball
-
main, principal, or chief; most important
the central cause of a problem
-
-
of or relating to the central nervous system
-
of or relating to the centrum of a vertebra
-
-
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
-
(of a force) directed from or towards a point
-
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
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
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
Explanation
Anything central is in the middle of something — or essential to it. Central things are fundamental and important. Think about the center of a circle: it's right in the middle, equidistant from all sides. Similarly, anything central is in the middle of something. The central part of a city is downtown. You can also say something central is an important, crucial part of something. National security is a central responsibility of the President. Communication is a central goal of writing. Central things are essential and key.
Vocabulary lists containing central
The SAT: Language of the Test, List 2
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The Language of Standardized Tests, List 1
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PARCC: Language of the Test (Grade7)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The central bank expects Malaysia’s economy to grow more than 5% in 2026, supported by strong exports, domestic demand and tourism.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2026
A central challenge in personalized phage therapy is finding the correct virus for each patient.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 5, 2026
Instead, the march is set to follow another central route from Place de la République to Place de la Nation.
From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026
With electrification emerging as one of the central themes of COP31, Turkey has been pushing hard for it to be an implementation-focused summit that turns existing climate pledges into action.
From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2026
To Farmer, it wasn’t unlike the fate of Haitian peasants who left the central plateau and migrated to the slums of Port-au-Prince.
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
The decision to hold the rate came a week after the European Central Bank also stood pat.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2026
Next year's two-day event will take place in the Manchester Central Convention Centre in Manchester city centre and host thousands of diplomats and delegates, as well as world leaders.
From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026
The Milton Keynes Central MP raised concerns about TT Rockstars on Tuesday at the Commons Science Committee, which is investigating the impact of screen time and digital devices on children's brain development.
From BBC ● Nov. 4, 2026
He left politics after that, and for a couple of years enjoyed one of those political plums, appointed by President Benjamin Harrison to be envoy and then minister plenipotentiary in Central America.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2026
“You brag too much, Hyperion. You are bright and fiery, but Percy Jackson defeated you anyway. I hear you became a nice tree in Central Park.”
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
Celia imagines the cane she cuts being ground in the centrales, and its thick sap collected in vats.
From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García
The two sulci centrales sive fissuræ Rolandi run straight to the border of the hemisphere, less deeply impressed than is normally the case, without forming an angle with each other.
From The Mind of the Child, Part II The Development of the Intellect, International Education Series Edited By William T. Harris, Volume IX. by William T. Preyer
Others, known as "colonos," are planters only, the crop being sold to the mills commonly called "centrales."
From Cuba, Old and New by Albert G. (Albert Gardner) Robinson
At that time the Museum sent out to the Écoles centrales of the different departments of France named collections made up from the duplicates, and in this sort of drudgery Lamarck took an active part.
From Lamarck, the Founder of Evolution His Life and Work by A. S. (Alpheus Spring) Packard
As at present organized, the force is divided into twenty-six brigades, one for each arrondissement and six companies, known as the reserve, formerly the brigades centrales.
From Paris From the Earliest Period to the Present Day; Volume 2 by William Walton
Heating to such houses is supplied by large plants known as TETs - an acronym that stands for "heat and electricity centrals" in Ukrainian as they generate electricity as well as heat.
From BBC ● Jan. 24, 2026
About the centrals was a new and unexpected enthusiasm.
From Time Magazine Archive
Its 15 "centrals" are pals with their customers, keep them in touch with local gossip.
From Time Magazine Archive
At the base of the pyramid is a membership of 2,889,550 represented by 29,574 local unions, 804 city centrals, 49 State branches, 4 departments.
From Time Magazine Archive
“Okay, two of them can go back in. Your centrals, or as you know them, your two front teeth,” Dr. Maris declared, looking pleased.
From "As Brave As You" by Jason Reynolds
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