World Book 1997 4.0

home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search

/ World Book 1997 4.0 / The World Book Multimedia Encyclopedia v4.00.iso / data / dictdata / centenni.dic < prev next >

Wrap

Text File | 1997-04-11 | 10.7 KB | 168 lines

<HTML> <HEAD><TITLE>DICTIONARY: centennial - center wheel</TITLE></HEAD> <BODY BGCOLOR="#ffffff"> <A HREF="a.dic">A</A> <A HREF="b.dic">B</A> <A HREF="c.dic">C</A> <A HREF="d.dic">D</A> <A HREF="e.dic">E</A> <A HREF="f.dic">F</A> <A HREF="g.dic">G</A> <A HREF="h.dic">H</A> <A HREF="i.dic">I</A> <A HREF="j.dic">J</A> <A HREF="k.dic">K</A> <A HREF="l.dic">L</A> <A HREF="m.dic">M</A> <A HREF="n.dic">N</A> <A HREF="o.dic">O</A> <A HREF="p.dic">P</A> <A HREF="q.dic">Q</A> <A HREF="r.dic">R</A> <A HREF="s.dic">S</A> <A HREF="t.dic">T</A> <A HREF="u.dic">U</A> <A HREF="v.dic">V</A> <A HREF="w.dic">W</A> <A HREF="x.dic">X</A> <A HREF="y.dic">Y</A> <A HREF="z.dic">Z</A> <A NAME="centennial"> centennial, adjective, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD>adj. 1. having to do with the 100th anniversary; of 100 years. <DD> 2. 100 years old or more. Ex. centennial pines. <DD>noun 1. a 100th anniversary. Ex. The town is celebrating its centennial. <DD> 2. a celebration of a 100th anniversary; centenary. Ex. I hope there will be a fair during our centennial. adv. centennially. </DL> <A NAME="centennialstate"> Centennial State,<DL COMPACT><DD> a nickname for Colorado. </DL> <A NAME="centennium"> centennium, noun, pl. -tenniums, -tennia.<DL COMPACT><DD> a period of a hundred years; century. </DL> <A NAME="center"> center, noun, verb, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD>noun 1. a point within a circle or sphere equally distant from all points of the circumference or surface. Ex. The bull's-eye is in the center. <DD> 2a. the middle point, place, or part. Ex. the center of a room, the center of equilibrium. (SYN) midst. <DD> b. the point, axis, or line around which something turns. Ex. The sun is the center of the solar system. <DD> 3a. (Figurative.) a person, thing, or group in a middle position. Ex. The pictures on loan from the Art Museum were the center of the exhibit. <DD> b. the main body of an army, as distinct from the two flanks or wings. Ex. Our center has given ground (Macaulay). <DD> 4. (Figurative.) a point toward which people or things go, or from which they come; main point. Ex. New York is one of the centers of world trade. (SYN) hub, core, pivot, focus. <DD> 5a. the offensive player who has the position between the guards in the line in football. He begins each scrimmage by passing the ball backward between his legs, usually to the quarterback. <DD> b. a player who starts play in such games as basketball and hockey. <DD> 6a. Often, Center. the part of certain lawmaking bodies that sits in front of the presiding officer. It is made up of the political groups having moderate opinions. <DD> b. (Figurative.) the persons and parties holding moderate views. Ex. His political views are just left of center. <DD> 7. (Physiology.) a mass of nerve cells closely connected and acting together; nerve center. Ex. the respiratory center, the center of balance. <DD> 8. (Machinery.) <DD> a. a tapered point on either spindle of a lathe or other machine to hold and turn the work. <DD> b. a tapered hole at the end of a shaft or spindle to hold such a point. <DD> 9a. the part of a target next to the bull's-eye. <DD> b. a shot, arrow, or dart that hits this part. <DD>v.t. 1. to place in or at the center. Ex. The object glass of a telescope must be accurately centered. (SYN) centralize. <DD> 2. (Figurative.) to concentrate, focus, rest. Ex. All his hopes are centered in her. <DD> 3. to mark or provide with a center. Ex. a smooth lawn centered by a pool. <DD> 4a. (American Football.) to pass back (the ball) to begin a play. <DD> b. (Soccer and Hockey.) to cross (the ball or puck) to near the entrance to the goal. <DD> 5. to grind or adjust (a lens) so that the optical center is at the geometrical center. <DD>v.i. 1a. to gather or collect at a center. Ex. The guests centered around the table. (SYN) converge. <DD> b. (Figurative.) to be concentrated in; rest (on). Ex. All his hopes centered on being promoted. (SYN) focus. <DD> 2. to be at a center. Ex. The helicopter centered over the sailor, plucking him from the water. <DD> 3. (Soccer and Hockey.) to cross the ball or puck over to the goalmouth. <DD>adj. of the center; at or comprising the center. Ex. Italy's unstable center parties saw the shape of things to come (Newsweek). <DD> Also, (especially British,) centre. expr. center down, (U.S.) to settle down or concentrate on important matters. Ex. This collective meditation which Friends like my grandmother called a "centering down" was mostly outside our experience (New Yorker). adj. centerless. </DL> <A NAME="centerbit"> center bit,<DL COMPACT><DD> a carpenter's bit with a sharp point in the center and two cutting wings that turn around the point. </DL> <A NAME="centerboard"> centerboard, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> a movable keel of a sailboat. It is lowered through a slot in the bottom of a boat to prevent drifting to leeward. Also, (especially British,) centreboard. </DL> <A NAME="centercircle"> center circle,<DL COMPACT><DD> the circle in the center of the playing area of hockey and basketball. The center circle of a basketball court is four feet in diameter. </DL> <A NAME="centered"> centered, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> 1. fixed on a center as a point of support or equilibrium. Ex. a centered arc, a centered position. <DD> 2. being in the center. Ex. Some dictionaries have centered dots between the syllables of entries. <DD> 3. furnished with a center. Also, (especially British,) centered. </DL> <A NAME="centerfield"> center field,<DL COMPACT><DD> (Baseball.) <DD> 1. the section of the outfield behind second base. <DD> 2. the position of the player in this area. (Abbr:) cf. </DL> <A NAME="centerfielder"> center fielder,<DL COMPACT><DD> a baseball player whose position is in center field. </DL> <A NAME="centerfire"> center-fire, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> 1. (of a cartridge) having the percussion cap or primer in the center of the base, instead of around its rim. <DD> 2. (of a gun or pistol) having a firing pin that strikes the cartridge in the center of its base. Also, central-fire. </DL> <A NAME="centerfold"> centerfold, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> an illustrated center spread in a magazine or book that takes up both left- and right-hand pages and sometimes has to be unfolded to be seen in full. </DL> <A NAME="centerforward"> center forward,<DL COMPACT><DD> in soccer, hockey, and, formerly, basketball: <DD> 1. a player whose position is in the center of the front line. <DD> 2. the position occupied by that player. </DL> <A NAME="centerhalf"> center half or halfback,<DL COMPACT><DD> in soccer and hockey: <DD> 1. a player whose position is in the center of the middle line. <DD> 2. the position of that player. </DL> <A NAME="centerleft"> center-left, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> of or having to do with a political coalition involving parties of the center and the left. </DL> <A NAME="centerline"> centerline, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> 1. a real or imaginary line dividing any plane figure or surface into two symmetrical halves, especially such a line in a mechanical drawing or on the surface of a road or on a playing court or field in a sport. <DD> 2. an axis (def. 2). </DL> <A NAME="centermost"> centermost, adjective.<DL COMPACT><DD> nearest the center. </DL> <A NAME="centerofbuoyancy"> center of buoyancy,<DL COMPACT><DD> a point in a ship or other floating body, corresponding to the center of gravity of the water displaced. </DL> <A NAME="centerofcurvature"> center of curvature,<DL COMPACT><DD> (Geometry.) the center of the circle of curvature. </DL> <A NAME="centerofgravity"> center of gravity,<DL COMPACT><DD> 1. (Physics.) that point of a body around which its weight is evenly balanced; that point at which the force of gravity acting on the body may be said to be concentrated. Ex. The center of gravity of a child's seesaw is at the center of the board when no one sits on it (Vera Kistiakowsky). <DD> 2. (Figurative.) the point of concentration or focus, especially upon which something rests. Ex. He is almost the center of gravity of the Congress Party (Time). Now with the population changes young people are even less at the center of gravity (Harper's). </DL> <A NAME="centerofmass"> center of mass,<DL COMPACT><DD> (Physics.) that point in a body which moves as though it bore the entire mass of the body, usually identical with the center of gravity. Many textbooks now use the term center of mass instead of center of gravity. Ex. The center of mass is used to calculate the motion of objects due to all kinds of forces, not only gravitational forces (Vera Kistiakowsky). </DL> <A NAME="centerofoscillation"> center of oscillation,<DL COMPACT><DD> (Physics.) a point in a pendulum such that, if the whole mass of the pendulum were concentrated there, the time of oscillation would remain unchanged. </DL> <A NAME="centerofpercussion"> center of percussion,<DL COMPACT><DD> (in a moving body) the point where the percussion or stroke is greatest, in which the whole striking force of the body is supposed to be collected. </DL> <A NAME="centerpiece"> centerpiece, noun.<DL COMPACT><DD> 1. an ornamental piece of glass or lace or an arrangement of flowers for the center of a dining table, buffet, or mantel. <DD> 2. any piece which is located in the center of something. <DD> 3. the principal or dominant feature (of a policy or program). Also, (especially British,) centrepiece. </DL> <A NAME="centerpunch"> center punch,<DL COMPACT><DD> a punch with a conical point for marking the center of a hole to be drilled or the center of work to be turned on a lathe. </DL> <A NAME="centerrail"> center rail,<DL COMPACT><DD> a third rail in the form of a rack which engages the cog of a locomotive on a cog railway. </DL> <A NAME="centerwheel"> center wheel,<DL COMPACT><DD> the wheel in the center of the frame of a watch or clock whose axis carries the minute hand. </DL> <A HREF="centesim.dic">NEXT</A>