Word of the Day ·

C3E1N1T1R1I1P3E1T1A1L1

centripetal

US/sɛnˈtɹɪp.ə.tl̩/UK/ˌsɛn.tɹɪˈpiː.tl̩/

adjective

What it means

  1. not comparableDirected or moving towards a centre.

    It was a centripetal time, with me at the centre, everything gravitating towards me.

    1988, Tsitsi Dangarembga, Nervous Conditions, Faber & Faber Limited (2021), page 141
  2. not comparableanatomyDirected towards the central nervous system; afferent.

In a sentence

It was a centripetal time, with me at the centre, everything gravitating towards me.

1988, Tsitsi Dangarembga, Nervous Conditions, Faber & Faber Limited (2021), page 141

Where it comes from

  1. Latincentrum“center”
  2. New Latincentripetālis
  3. Englishcentripetal

From New Latin centripetālis coined by Sir Isaac Newton, from Latin centrum (“center”) + petō (“to seek, aim”) + -al. Analysable as centri- + -petal.

Full entry for centripetal →

Subscribe with RSS.