( BrE ) ( NAmE cen·ter ) / ˈsentə(r); NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun
MIDDLE
1.
[ C ] the middle point or part of sth :
the centre of a circle
a long table in the centre of the room
chocolates with soft centres
—picture at circle
TOWN / CITY
2.
[ C ] ( especially BrE ) ( NAmE usually down·town [ usually sing. ]) the main part of a town or city where there are a lot of shops / stores and offices :
in the town / city centre
the centre of town
a town-centre car park
3.
[ C ] a place or an area where a lot of people live; a place where a lot of business or cultural activity takes place :
major urban / industrial centres
a centre of population
Small towns in South India serve as economic and cultural centres for the surrounding villages.
BUILDING
4.
[ C ] a building or place used for a particular purpose or activity :
a shopping / sports / leisure / community centre
the Centre for Policy Studies
OF EXCELLENCE
5.
[ C ] centre of excellence a place where a particular kind of work is done extremely well
OF ATTENTION
6.
[ C , usually sing. ] the point towards which people direct their attention :
Children like to be the centre of attention .
The prime minister is at the centre of a political row over leaked Cabinet documents.
-CENTRED
7.
(in adjectives) having the thing mentioned as the most important feature or centre of attention :
a child-centred approach to teaching
—see also self-centred
IN POLITICS
8.
(usually the centre ) [ sing. ] a moderate (= middle) political position or party, between the extremes of left-wing and right-wing parties :
a party of the centre
IN SPORT
9.
[ C ] = centre forward
•
IDIOMS
see front noun , left adverb
■ verb
[ vn ] to move sth so that it is in the centre of sth else :
Carefully centre the photograph on the page and stick it in place.
•
PHRASAL VERBS
- centre around / on / round / upon sb/sth | centre sth around / on / round / upon sb/sth
- centre sth in ...
••
WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English : from Old French , or from Latin centrum , from Greek kentron sharp point, stationary point of a pair of compasses, related to kentein to prick.