hub
[huhb]
- the central part of a wheel, as that part into which the spokes are inserted.
- the central part or axle end from which blades or spokelike parts radiate on various devices, as on a fan or propeller.
- a center around which other things revolve or from which they radiate; a focus of activity, authority, commerce, transportation, etc.: Chicago is a railroad hub.
- the Hub, Boston, Mass. (used as a nickname).
- the peg or hob used as a target in quoits and similar games.
- any one of the holes in an electrical panel, into which connections may be plugged.
- Coining. a design of hardened steel in relief, used as a punch in making a die.
- Surveying. a stake bearing a tack used to mark a theodolite position.
- Metalworking. a die forced into a metal blank.
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- Metalworking. to stamp (a metal blank) with a hub.
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Origin of hub
First recorded in 1505–15; perhaps variant of hob1
Synonyms
See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.comDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for hub
Contemporary Examples
Their hub is an aggregate of photographs and eyewitness reports taken by hundreds of collectives.
The land of active volcanoes, volatile weather, and dramatic landscapes has been a hub of creativity and culture for centuries.
"There was no such thing as a hub back then—the only way to get to Europe or Africa was through New York," she said.
Kim and Kanye to Wed in Florence; Naomi Watts to Wear Gown Sponsored by Prudential Financial at CannesThe Fashion Beast Team
May 16, 2014
The airport is highly regulated and the number of airlines that can claim a hub there is small.
U.S. Justice Department Files Lawsuit to Block Merger Between American Airlines and US AirwaysMiranda Green
August 13, 2013
In Seattle, a garage served as the hub for a bare-bones book-selling site called Amazon.com, which was launched on July 16, 1995.
Historical Examples
It isn't the thing at all; but see here, Judge, examine this hub.
The hub, of brass, is made according to the stream-line method.
Boys' Book of Model BoatsRaymond Francis Yates
The method of cutting the slots in the hub is shown at D, Fig. 37.
Boys' Book of Model BoatsRaymond Francis Yates
Should he have grasped the spokes near the hub, near the rim, or in the middle?
Common ScienceCarleton W. Washburne
The poor creature's dress had caught in something, and she stood an instant on the hub.
Peak and PrairieAnna Fuller
hub
- 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
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Word Origin
C17: probably variant of hob 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for hub
n.
"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]
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper