central
adjective
of or forming the center.
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central
1 American
[sen-truhl]
/ ˈsɛn trəl /
adjective
-
of or forming the center.
the central hut in the village.
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in, at, or near the center.
a central position.
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constituting something from which other related things proceed or upon which they depend.
a central office.
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the play's central character.
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Anatomy, Zoology.
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of or relating to the central nervous system.
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of or relating to the centrum of a vertebra.
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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.
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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
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main, principal, or chief; most important
the central cause of a problem
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of or relating to the central nervous system
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of or relating to the centrum of a vertebra
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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
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(of a force) directed from or towards a point
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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:
Like many voters in the central US state of Nebraska, Kristin Benson, a 39-year-old stay-at-home mother, voted for Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election.
From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026
The popularity of high-risk bets among investors looking to cash in on South Korea’s artificial-intelligence boom has caused concern at the central bank.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
A prolonged oil shock could keep consumer prices elevated and complicate the path for central banks already navigating a difficult policy environment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
Miguel Ángel Pérez Triano, the central government's delegate in Ceuta, addressed the revelations about the text messages the CNI had sent to his office the day before the mass crossing.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
The floor beyond the opening sloped down to a central chamber.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
The European Central Bank is tipped to lift borrowing costs Thursday.
From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026
Central Command, which is responsible for the Middle East.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
Justice Department has launched an investigation into conditions at Los Angeles County’s Men’s Central Jail, following years of concerns about poor conditions and inmate deaths.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
The lag is three to six months, which lands it in the October through January prints — after Thursday’s European Central Bank vote, after the Federal Reserve’s meeting next week.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026
The little Balkan nation of Bulgaria, watching the Italian and Russian setbacks, threw in its lot with the Central Powers.
From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman
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
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
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
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
They claim that a majority of Cuba's 175 "centrals" are now operating at a loss or barely paying expenses.
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
About the centrals was a new and unexpected enthusiasm.
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
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
