Something that is central is in the middle of a place or area.
...Central America's Caribbean coast.
Wild camels are a problem in central Australia.
...a rich woman living in central London.
centrallyadverb [ADVERB -ed, ADVERB after verb]
The main cabin has its full-sized double bed centrally placed with plenty of roomaround it.
2. adjective
A place that is central is easy to reach because it is in the centre of a city, town, or particular area.
...a central location in the capital.
centrallyadverb [ADVERB -ed, ADVERB after verb]
...this centrally located hotel, situated on the banks of the Marne Canal.
3. adjective [ADJECTIVE noun]
A central group or organization makes all the important decisions that are followed throughout a larger organization or a country.
There is a lack of trust towards the central government in Rome.
...the central committee of the Cuban communist party.
centrallyadverb [ADVERB -ed, ADVERB after verb]
This is a centrally planned economy.
4. adjective
The central person or thing in a particular situation is the most important one.
Black dance music has been central to mainstream pop since the early '60s. [+ to]
...a central part of their culture.
centralityuncountable noun
...the centrality of love to happiness. [+ of]
centrallyadverb [ADVERB after verb]
In her memoirs Naomi is quick to acknowledge that her grandmother was centrally importantin her venture as a writer.
More Synonyms of central
central in British English
(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.
a.
of or relating to the central nervous system
b.
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
Derived forms
centrally (ˈcentrally)
adverb
Central in American English
(ˈsɛntrəl)
former administrative region of SC Scotland, which included the former county of Clackmannan and parts of the former counties of Perth, Stirling, and West Lothian
central in American English
(ˈsɛntrəl)
adjective
1.
in, at, or near the center
2.
of or forming the center
3.
equally distant or accessible from various points
4.
most important; main; basic; principal
5.
of or having to do with a single source that controls all activity in an organization or system
6.
a.
designating or of that part of a nervous system consisting of the brain and spinal cord or, in many invertebrates, the chief ganglia and their major nerve cords
b.
of the centrum of a vertebra
7. Phonetics
articulated with the tongue in a position approximately halfway between front and back
said of certain vowels, as (u) in bud
noun US
8.
a telephone exchange, esp. the main one, or the telephone operator
an early term
Derived forms
centrally (ˈcentrally)
adverb
Word origin
L centralis
Examples of 'central' in a sentence
central
Yet central government is not doing nearly enough.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
Most central and northern areas can expect fine conditions.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Only constant pressure from central government is going to produce progress.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
It features a large central compartment.
The Sun (2016)
If they had not pressed this point, the central argument would not have held.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
I live quite central in the city.
The Sun (2016)
This is the central point.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
Indeed, it's an absolutely central part of our justice system that it remains open and transparent.
The Sun (2016)
UPSIDE It's in a great central location.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Usually eight chairs are placed in a central point in the room.
Christianity Today (2000)
You also need to play with width and stretch things as the central area will be packed.
The Sun (2016)
Local and central government need to get their act together.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
It is a story not in fact of possibility but of one central failure.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Music was a central element to the films.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Just make sure that you go for a good central location.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
The first is that it must protect its central deficit reduction policy.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
The central point was that republican liberty could exist only once economic equality had been established.
Roper, Jon Democracy and its Critics - Anglo-American democratic thought in the nineteenth century (1989)
This effectively blocked progress on other elements of the central area plan.
Brindley,Tim & Rydin, Yvonne & Stoker, Gerry Remaking Planning: the politics of urban change in the Thatcher years (1989)
It has spread beyond the ability of one central bank to cure it.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
It also emerged that five of the panel were either present or former members of the central committee.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
They demand action by central government.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
Music is central to her life.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
There are grounds other than military history for examining closely the value of mobile defence and manoeuvre warfare on the central front.
McInnes, Colin NATO's Changing Strategic Agenda (1990)
To reach the apartment, you have to climb a large central staircase.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Not that longterm planning seems a central part of his persona, not quite yet.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
It has been a similar story in Canada with blistering heat and drought in central and eastern parts.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
In other languages
central
British English: central /ˈsɛntrəl/ ADJECTIVE
Something that is central is in the middle of a place or area.
...Central Asia.
American English: central
Arabic: مَرْكَزيّ
Brazilian Portuguese: central
Chinese: 中心的
Croatian: centralan
Czech: střední
Danish: central
Dutch: centraal
European Spanish: central
Finnish: keskeinen
French: central
German: zentral
Greek: κεντρικός
Italian: centrale
Japanese: 中央の
Korean: 중심의
Norwegian: sentral
Polish: centralny
European Portuguese: central
Romanian: central
Russian: центральный
Latin American Spanish: central
Swedish: central
Thai: ที่เป็นศูนย์กลาง
Turkish: merkezi
Ukrainian: центральний
Vietnamese: ở trung tâm
All related terms of 'central'
central angle
an angle whose vertex is at the centre of a circle
central area
An area is a particular part of a town, a country, a region, or the world.
Central Asia
a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east, and from southern Russia in the north to northern India in the south. It includes the five former Soviet republics of Kazakhstan , Kyrgyzstan , Tajikistan , Turkmenistan , Uzbekistan , as well as Afghanistan and parts of Iran , China, Mongolia , Pakistan , India, and southwestern Siberia .
Central Asian
involving or denoting the people, countries, cultures , or languages of Central Asia
central bank
a national bank that does business mainly with a government and with other banks : it regulates the volume and cost of credit
central city
the principal municipality of a metropolitan area, surrounded by suburbs and smaller towns; esp., the crowded , industrial, often blighted area
central focus
The focus of something is the main topic or main thing that it is concerned with.
central issue
An issue is an important subject that people are arguing about or discussing .
Central Karoo
an arid plateau of S central South Africa, in Cape Province, separated from the Little Karoo to the southwest by the Swartberg range . Average height : 750 m (2500 ft)
Central Time
standard time or daylight saving time in the time zone which includes the central states of the U.S.
Central America
an isthmus joining the continents of North and South America, extending from the S border of Mexico to the NW border of Colombia and consisting of Belize , Guatemala , Honduras , El Salvador , Nicaragua , Costa Rica, and Panama . Area: about 518 000 sq km (200 000 sq miles)
central casting
a nominal casting agency that delivers stereotypes to films or, figuratively, to real life situations
Central Europe
an area between Eastern and Western Europe, generally accepted as comprising Austria , the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary , Liechtenstein , Poland , Slovakia , Slovenia , and Switzerland
central heating
Central heating is a heating system for buildings. Air or water is heated in one place and travels round a building through pipes and radiators.
Central Karroo
an arid plateau of S central South Africa, in Cape Province, separated from the Little Karoo to the southwest by the Swartberg range . Average height : 750 m (2500 ft)
central locking
a system by which all the doors of a motor vehicle can be locked simultaneously when the driver's door is locked
Central Powers
(before World War I) Germany , Italy , and Austria-Hungary after they were linked by the Triple Alliance in 1882
Central Region
a former local government region in central Scotland, formed in 1975 from Clackmannanshire , most of Stirlingshire , and parts of Perthshire , West Lothian, Fife , and Kinross-shire ; in 1996 it was replaced by the council areas of Stirling , Clackmannanshire, and Falkirk
central reserve
the strip, often covered with grass, that separates the two sides of a motorway or dual carriageway
central sulcus
a deep cleft in each hemisphere of the brain separating the frontal lobe from the parietal lobe
Massif Central
a mountainous plateau region of S central France, occupying about one sixth of the country: contains several extinct volcanic cones , notably Puy de D ôme, 1465 m (4806 ft). Highest point: Puy de Sancy, 1885 m (6184 ft). Area: about 85 000 sq km (33 000 sq miles)
Central American
of or relating to Central America or its inhabitants
central argument
An argument is a statement or set of statements that you use in order to try to convince people that your opinion about something is correct .
Central Committee
(in Communist parties) the body responsible for party policy between meetings of the party congress : in practice, it is in charge of day-to-day operations of the party bureaucracy
Central European
involving or denoting the people, countries, cultures , or languages of Central Europe
central government
the government of a state or country
central importance
The importance of something is its quality of being significant , valued, or necessary in a particular situation .
central location
A location is the place where something happens or is situated.
Central Provinces
→ the Central Provinces
central question
A question is a problem , matter, or point which needs to be considered.
central tendency
the tendency of the values of a random variable to cluster around the mean, median , and mode
Central Bedfordshire
a unitary authority of S central England . Pop: 252 100 (2007 est). Area: 712 sq km (275 sq miles)
central reservation
The central reservation is the strip of ground , often covered with grass , that separates the two sides of a major road .
Central Daylight Time
the time observed in the Central Time Zone of the United states when Daylight Savings Time is in effect; GMT -5
Central European Time
the standard time adopted by Western European countries one hour ahead of Greenwich Mean Time, corresponding to British Summer Time
Central India Agency
a former group of 89 states in India, under the supervision of a British political agent until 1947: most important were Indore , Bhopal , and Rewa
central limit theorem
the fundamental result that the sum (or mean) of independent identically distributed random variables with finite variance approaches a normally distributed random variable as their number increases, whence in particular if enough samples are repeatedly drawn from any population , the sum of the sample values can be thought of, approximately , as an outcome from a normally distributed random variable
Central Standard Time
one of the standard times used in North America , based on the local time of the 90° meridian , six hours behind Greenwich Mean Time
European Central Bank
the central bank of the European Union , established in 1998 to oversee the process of European Monetary Union and subsequently to direct monetary policy within the countries using the euro
gas central heating
a system of central heating fuelled by combustible gas
North-Central State
a state of N Nigeria . Capital : Kaduna . Pop: 4 438 007 (1995 est). Area: 46 053 sq km (17 781 sq miles)
Soviet Central Asia
the region of the former Soviet Union now occupied by Kazakhstan , Kyrgyzstan , Tajikistan , Turkmenistan , and Uzbekistan
the Central Provinces
the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec
Central African Empire
a landlocked country of central Africa: joined with Chad as a territory of French Equatorial Africa in 1910; became an independent republic in 1960; a parliamentary monarchy (1976–79); consists of a huge plateau , mostly savanna , with dense forests in the south; drained chiefly by the Shari and Ubangi Rivers . Official languages: French and Sango . Religion: Christian and animist. Currency: franc . Capital: Bangui . Pop: 4 659 080 (2017 est). Area: 622 577 sq km (240 376 sq miles)
Central African Republic
a landlocked country of central Africa: joined with Chad as a territory of French Equatorial Africa in 1910; became an independent republic in 1960; a parliamentary monarchy (1976–79); consists of a huge plateau , mostly savanna , with dense forests in the south; drained chiefly by the Shari and Ubangi Rivers . Official languages: French and Sango . Religion : Christian and animist. Currency : franc . Capital: Bangui . Pop: 4 659 080 (2017 est). Area: 622 577 sq km (240 376 sq miles)
central locking device
a small device that controls the central locking on a motor vehicle
central nervous system
Your central nervous system is the part of your nervous system that consists of the brain and spinal cord.
central processing unit
the part of a computer that performs logical and arithmetical operations on the data as specified in the instructions
fissure of Rolando
a deep cleft in each hemisphere of the brain separating the frontal lobe from the parietal lobe
Central African Federation
a federation (1953–63) of Northern Rhodesia , Southern Rhodesia, and Nyasaland
Chinese translation of 'central'
central
(ˈsɛntrəl)
adj
(= in the centre) 中心的 (zhōngxīn de)
⇒ central London伦敦中心 (Lúndūn zhōngxīn)
⇒ The cafe was near Oxford Street, very central for her.这家咖啡店靠近牛津街，对她来说很近。 (Zhè jiā kāfēidiàn kàojìn Niújīn Jiē, duì tā lái shuō hěn jìn.)
[committee, government]中央的 (zhōngyāng de)
⇒ the central committee of the Cuban communist party古巴共产党中央委员会 (Gǔbā Gòngchǎndǎng zhōngyāng wěiyuánhuì)
(= most important)[idea, figure]最关(關)键(鍵)的 (zuì guānjiàn de)
⇒ the central character in the film电影主角 (diànyǐng zhǔjué)
⇒ She is the central person in this project.她是这个工程中最关键的人物。 (Tā shì zhège gōngchéng zhōng zuì guānjiàn de rénwù.)
All related terms of 'central'
Central America
中美洲 Zhōngměizhōu
central heating
中央供暖系统(統) zhōngyāng gōngnuǎn xìtǒng
central reservation
中央分车(車)带(帶) zhōngyāng fēnchēdài [ 美 = median strip ]
the main/central plank
( of policy, argument ) 主要/中心政纲(綱)准(準)则(則) zhǔyào/zhōngxīn zhènggāng zhǔnzé
CDT
Central Daylight Time 中部夏令时(時) Zhōngbù Xiàlìngshí
1 (adjective)
Definition
of, at, or forming the centre of something
She had a house in central London.
Synonyms
inner
She got up and went into an inner office.
middle
that crucial middle point of the picture
mid
interior
He turned on the interior light and examined the map.
Opposites
outer
,
exterior
,
outermost
2 (adjective)
Definition
main or principal
a central part of government policy
Synonyms
main
My main concern now is to protect the children.
central
a central part of government policy
chief
Financial stress is acknowledged as a chief reason for divorce.
The job went to one of his chief rivals.
key
essential
Two essential elements must be proven: motive and opportunity.
primary
the primary cause of the disease
principal
Their principal concern is that of winning the next election.
fundamental
the fundamental principles of democracy
focal
Opposites
minor
,
secondary
,
subsidiary
, subordinate
Additional synonyms
in the sense of central
Definition
main or principal
a central part of government policy
Synonyms
main,
central,
chief,
key,
essential,
primary,
principal,
fundamental,
focal
in the sense of chief
Financial stress is acknowledged as a chief reason for divorce.The job went to one of his chief rivals.
Synonyms
primary,
highest,
leading,
main,
prime,
capital,
central,
key,
essential,
premier,
supreme,
most important,
outstanding,
principal,
prevailing,
cardinal,
paramount,
big-time (informal),
foremost,
major league (informal),
predominant,
uppermost,
pre-eminent,
especial
in the sense of essential
Definition
basic or fundamental
Two essential elements must be proven: motive and opportunity.