center

center in politics, a party following a middle course. The term was first used in France in 1789, when the moderates of the National Assembly sat in the center of the hall. It can refer to a separate party in a political system, e.g., the Catholic Center party of imperial and Weimar Germany, or to the middle group of a party consisting of several ideological factions.

Center Chair In recent journalistic usage “center chair” refers to the chief justice of the United States, who occupies the center seat of the bench of the Supreme Court.

William M. Wiecek

cen·ter / ˈsentər/ (Brit. cen·tre) • n. 1. the middle point of a circle or sphere, equidistant from every point on the circumference or surface. ∎  a point or part that is equally distant from all sides, ends, or surfaces of something; the middle: the center of the ceiling. ∎  a pivot or axis of rotation: the galactic rotation of the solar system around the galactic center. ∎  a political party or group holding moderate opinions. ∎  Sports the middle player in a line or group in many games: Terry played center on the basketball team. ∎  Baseball short for center field. ∎  a core, such as the filling in a piece of chocolate: truffles with liqueur centers. ∎  a conical adjustable support for a workpiece in a lathe or similar machine. 2. a place or group of buildings where a specified activity is concentrated: a center for medical research. ∎  a point at which an activity or quality is at its most intense and from which it spreads: the city was a center of discontent. ∎  the point on which an activity or process is focused: two issues at the center of the health-care debate. ∎  the most important place in the respect specified: Geneva was then the center of the international world. • v. 1. [intr.] (center around/on) have (something) as a major concern or theme: the case centers around the couple's children. ∎  [tr.] (center something around/on) cause an argument or discussion to focus on (a specified issue): he is centering his discussion on an analysis of patterns of mortality. ∎  (be centered in) (of an activity) occur mainly in or around (a specified place). 2. [tr.] place in the middle: to center the needle, turn the knob. ∎ Football pass the ball back from the ground to another player to begin a down; snap. PHRASES: the center of attention a person or thing that draws general attention.DERIVATIVES: cen·ter·most / -ˌmōst/ adj.