central

¹ American  

[sen-truhl] / ˈsɛn trəl /

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.

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noun

1. (formerly)

   1. a main telephone exchange.

   2. a telephone operator at such an exchange.

central ² American  

[sen-trahl, sen-trahl] / sɛnˈtrɑl, sɛnˈtrɑl /

noun

plural

centrals,

plural

centrales

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

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Central ³ American  

[sen-truhl] / ˈsɛn trəl /

noun

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

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central British  

/ 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

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Other Word Forms

• centrally adverb

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

Example Sentences

A bridge near the holy city of Qom and another carrying a railway line in the central city of Kashan were struck, according to regional officials quoted by state media.

From Barron's • Apr. 8, 2026

The economics of this war have always been a central factor, not a by-product.

From BBC • Apr. 8, 2026

Fed officials stuck to a forecast of one rate cut this year, but economists think the central bank is in no rush to do anything with rates.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 8, 2026

The two-week cease-fire agreed between the U.S. and Iran has left investors less worried that major central banks will raise borrowing costs this year.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026

The next morning, we joined up with Goldfarb, who had flown in from New York, and some Soros Foundation advisers and Russian officials to visit Moscow’s immense central prison, Matrosskaya Tishina.

From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French

Related Words

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