hub
[ huhb ]
/ hʌb /
noun
verb (used with object), hubbed, hub·bing.
Metalworking. to stamp (a metal blank) with a hub.
Nearby words
Origin of hub
First recorded in 1505–15; perhaps variant of hob1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for hub
British Dictionary definitions for hub
hub
/ (hʌb) /
noun
the central portion of a wheel, propeller, fan, etc, through which the axle passes
the focal point
computing a device for connecting computers in a network
Word Origin for hub
C17: probably variant of hob 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for hub
hub
"solid center of a wheel," 1640s, perhaps from hubbe, originally "lump," the source of hob of a fireplace and hobnail, as in boots. A wheelwright's word, not generally known or used until c.1828; it reached wider currency in connection with bicycles. Meaning "center of interest or activity or importance" first recorded 1858 in writings of Oliver W. Holmes, and originally especially of Boston.
"Boston State-House is the hub of the solar system." [O.W. Holmes, "Autocrat of the Breakfast Table"]
"[E]verybody knows that Boston used to be called the Hub, meaning the hub of the universe. It may still be the hub, because the center of a wheel moves slowly." [J.P. Marquand, "Life," March 24, 1941]
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper