as in center
a thing or place that is of greatest importance to an activity or interest
during the Vietnam War the university's campus effectively became the area's omphalos for antiwar activity
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of omphalos
In front of me was a black ovoid stone, known as the omphalos, set on the spot in Greek mythology where two eagles loosed by Zeus crossed paths at the earth’s nexus.
—
Liz Alderman, New York Times, 9 July 2019
While the temples have crumbled, seeing the omphalos gave me goose bumps, and left me awe-struck over Delphi’s sublime place in history.
—Liz Alderman, New York Times, 9 July 2019
Zeus marked the spot with a stone called the omphalos (navel), to signify the location’s centrality.
—National Geographic, 12 Mar. 2019
Liz Alderman, New York Times, 9 July 2019
While the temples have crumbled, seeing the omphalos gave me goose bumps, and left me awe-struck over Delphi’s sublime place in history.
—Liz Alderman, New York Times, 9 July 2019
Zeus marked the spot with a stone called the omphalos (navel), to signify the location’s centrality.
—National Geographic, 12 Mar. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for omphalos
Noun
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His beats have lots of detail but no fixed center, creating rhythms that call to mind choppy waves or a record that’s stuck in a groove.—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
21 Mar. 2025
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Inspired by the true story of a friendship Laymon struck when looking for her father online, the film centers on Lily (Ferreira), who longs for a familial connection, having been abandoned by her mother as a child and then by her father in her 20s.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
21 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Some people plan just a few months ahead, focusing on immediate expenses, while others think decades into the future, prioritizing long-term investments, retirement planning, and strategic capital investing.—
Shane Enete,
Forbes,
24 Mar. 2025
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Southern Lebanon was the location of much of Israel's recent air and ground campaign against Hezbollah, with parts of the capital Beirut also devastated.—
David Brennan,
ABC News,
23 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Since its founding in 1869, the university has turned Carbondale into a tiny cultural mecca and a powerful economic engine in an otherwise vast, rural region that has been battered by the decline of manufacturing and coal mining.—
Molly Parker,
ProPublica,
27 Mar. 2025
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Critics of the loophole point to Walt Disney as among the first to take advantage of it decades ago when developing its tourist mecca of resorts and theme parks near Orlando.—
Josh Salman,
Miami Herald,
4 Mar. 2025
Noun
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This is particularly important in Lisbon which, as a hub for TAP Air Portugal, competes for connecting market share with Madrid in the Iberian peninsula, and more broadly across Europe.—
Kevin Rozario,
Forbes,
22 Mar. 2025
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One option is 45 minutes away at the major Delta Airlines hub Salt Lake City, home to major sports teams and plenty of venues, which has long played Sundance programming and has a lively film community.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
21 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Khan Suri was held at ‘the nucleus of the US deportation machine’ Khan Suri, an Indian national whose research focuses on peacebuilding in the Middle East, was detained by ICE officials in Chantilly, Virginia, and sent to a temporary holding facility in Louisiana.—
Dalia Faheid,
CNN Money,
26 Mar. 2025
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The former Mansfield Legacy standout desired a bigger role, but the Horned Frogs have a strong nucleus at forward with freshmen David Punch, Micah Robinson and Jace Posey.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
25 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Oranges: Any sort of oranges will do, but a nice variety of navel, Cara Cara, and blood oranges is wonderful.—
Catherine Jessee,
Southern Living,
28 Mar. 2025
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Think baggy, low-slung jeans and ribbed cardigans like this one that show a hint of navel without being too revealing.—
Lane Nieset,
Travel + Leisure,
26 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The locus of these efforts appears to be on 2,250 acres of flat farmland in northeast Louisiana, where Meta has begun work on a $10 billion data center project.—
Christopher Helman,
Forbes,
8 Feb. 2025
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Since its founding more than two decades ago, the center, which is based in Washington, has served as a locus of Democratic opposition whenever Republicans have held the White House.—
Reid J. Epstein,
New York Times,
20 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Omphalos.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/omphalos. Accessed 3 Apr. 2025.
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