hub

[huhb]

noun

1. the central part of a wheel, as that part into which the spokes are inserted.

2. the central part or axle end from which blades or spokelike parts radiate on various devices, as on a fan or propeller.

3. 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.

   Synonyms: heart, pivot, core

4. the Hub, Boston, Massachusetts (used as a nickname).

5. the peg or hob used as a target in quoits and similar games.

6. any one of the holes in an electrical panel, into which connections may be plugged.

7. Computers.,  a device connecting others in a network and enabling communication among them by receiving data packets from any of the devices and broadcasting them to every device on the network irrespective of the intended destination: used primarily in small local area networks.

8. Coining.,  a design of hardened steel in relief, used as a punch in making a die.

9. Surveying.,  a stake bearing a tack used to mark a theodolite position.

10. Metalworking.,  a die forced into a metal blank.

verb (used with object)

hubbed, hubbing 

1. Metalworking.,  to stamp (a metal blank) with a hub.

hub

/ hʌb /

noun

1. the central portion of a wheel, propeller, fan, etc, through which the axle passes

2. the focal point

3. computing a device for connecting computers in a network

Word History and Origins

Origin of hub¹

First recorded in 1505–15; perhaps variant of hob ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of hub¹

C17: probably variant of _hob ¹

Example Sentences

Investors will be watching for clues about consumer demand in Asia’s financial hub.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

More than 200 venues including libraries, village halls, churches and community hubs across Northamptonshire are offering support in a "non-judgemental" environment.

Read more on BBC

Bags of refuse for sale to recycling companies line a muddy path to a vegetable garden tended by residents of the informal settlement at the foot of the high-rises of Sandton, South Africa's economic hub.

Read more on Barron's

Authorities have begun investigating what sparked the blaze -- the financial hub's worst in almost 80 years -- including the presence of bamboo scaffolding and plastic mesh wrapped around the structures as part of a major renovation.

Read more on Barron's

The Rzeszów metropolitan area has become a hub for Western military and humanitarian support for Ukraine.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• nerve center