center
cen·ter/ˈsɛn.təː/noun, adjective, verb
center is spelled C-E-N-T-E-R: 6 letters and 2 syllables (cen·ter). It appears 155 times per million words in written English, the 657th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “center vs centre” about 1,900 times a month (Google, United States). As a noun, center means “The point in the interior of a circle that is equidistant from all points on the circumference” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of center is centers.
How many letters and syllables are in center?
| Letters | 6: C-E-N-T-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: cen·ter |
| In writing | 155 times per million words; the 657th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search | |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is center?
Center appears 155 times per million words in written English, the 657th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce center?
- UK /ˈsɛn.təː/
- UK [ˈsɛn.tʰəː]
- /ˈsɛn.tɚ/
Center has 2 syllables, split cen·ter in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-US_center_(nasal_flapping).ogg, En-us-center.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with center
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with center?
3 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as center from its last stressed vowel (/ɛntə/, British pronunciation):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: recent, centre.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of center
- centers plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- centre
- centering participle, present
- centered participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does center mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
CanadaUSThe point in the interior of a circle that is equidistant from all points on the circumference.
- 2
CanadaUSThe point in the interior of a sphere that is equidistant from all points on the circumference.
- 3
CanadaUSThe middle portion of something; the part well away from the edges.
- 4
CanadaUSobsoleteThe innermost point of the Earth, or the Earth itself, as the center or foundation of the Universe; the center or foundation of the Universe abstractly.
- 5
CanadaUSThe point on a line that is midway between the ends.
- 6
CanadaUSThe point in the interior of any figure of any number of dimensions that has as its coordinates the arithmetic mean of the coordinates of all points on the perimeter of the figure (or of all points in the interior for a center of volume).
The centroid is one of the centres of a triangle
- 7
CanadaUSA point on a triangle's plane that is in some sense in its middle.
There are several centers of a triangle such as its circumcenter, incenter, orthocenter and centroid.
- 8
CanadaUSA place, especially a building or complex, set aside for some specified function or activity.
shopping center, convention center, civic center, garment center, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Rockefeller Center
adjective
- 1
CanadaUSOf, at, or related to a center.
verb
- 1
CanadaUSTo cause (an object) to occupy the center of an area.
????, Matthew Prior, Celia to Damon Thy joys are centred all in me alone.
- 2
CanadaUSTo cause (some attribute, such as a mood or voltage) to be adjusted to a value which is midway between the extremes.
- 3
CanadaUSTo give (something) a central basis.
- 4
CanadaUSTo concentrate on (something), to pay close attention to (something).
The plot centers on the life of a working-class family.
- 5
CanadaUSTo form a recess or indentation for the reception of a center.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate center?
Wiktionary records 4 abbreviations of center: Ctr., MOC, ctr, ctr..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Center in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | centre , milieu , centre de masse , central , centrer |
| German | Zentrum, Mitte, Mittelpunkt , zenterieren, ansammeln, zentrieren |
| Portuguese | centro , centrar , concentrar, focar |
| Spanish | centro , centrar, encentrar , centrarse [with en] |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does center come from?
From Middle English center, centre, from Middle French centre, from Latin centrum, from Ancient Greek κέντρον (kéntron), from κεντεῖν (kenteîn, “to prick, goad”). Doublet of centrum.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).