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
While the rest of the world was in its accustomed turmoil, the Press, for which Ireland was the omphalos of the universe, took scant notice.
—
Christine Smallwood, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
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
Christine Smallwood, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
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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Texas had subbed 7-foot center Matas Vokietaitis out of the game with 11 seconds left after Boilermakers big man Oscar Cluff had fouled out, giving Purdue a better opportunity in the paint.—
Janie McCauley,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Mar. 2026
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The Gators now await NBA decisions from Condon, small forward Thomas Haugh and center Rueben Chinyelu, three juniors who formed one of the nation’s top frontcourts alongside with 7-foot-1 senior reserve Micah Handlogten.—
Edgar Thompson,
The Orlando Sentinel,
27 Mar. 2026
Noun
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An open-air concert in the middle of a capital city inverts all of that.—
Yook JiHun,
Popular Science,
26 Mar. 2026
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The thousands of blooming cherry trees that adorn the nation's capital have burst into ephemeral blossoms, the arrival of which marks the unofficial beginning of Washington's tourist season.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The tech mecca has slowly begun to emerge from one of the country’s deepest declines in downtown retail, in part through a program that peppered the city with subsidized pop-up shops.—
Roger Vincent,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Mar. 2026
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Each January, that stillness is interrupted by the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting, transforming a quiet alpine town, Davos, into a mecca of power.—
Victoria Bousis,
Rolling Stone,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Check out the all new PLAY hub with puzzles, games and more!—
Anthony Robledo,
USA Today,
28 Mar. 2026
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The New Yorker reviewed more than a dozen unclassified documents about ICE-tracking apps, many of them created by fusion centers—intelligence hubs created after 9/11 to share information about criminal and terrorist threats.—
Oriana van Praag,
New Yorker,
28 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Assuming players are retained, TCU will have a nucleus to build around with junior guard Donovyn Hunter, the sophomore Silva and freshman guard Clara Bielefeld.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
31 Mar. 2026
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Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Will Smith are the trio of players that the Dodgers brain trust will believe in for the past, present, and distant future as a nucleus of the ball club.—
Tyler Erzberger,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Hundreds of eyes go wide, taking in the warm sweep of my navel, my hips.—
Danielle Parker,
CBS News,
8 Mar. 2026
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Blood was drawn from his navel to evaluate his oxygen and carbon dioxide levels.—
Steven Levingston,
Vanity Fair,
23 Feb. 2026
Noun
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But on the Facebook Just in Time Broadway fan group, which has 7,700 members and seems to be the locus of Groffie fandom, the predominant tone is warm, almost giddy.—
Alexandra Starr,
Vulture,
27 Mar. 2026
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The second floor, where bespoke shirts are made, is the store’s real locus.—
Marisa Meltzer,
Vanity Fair,
24 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Omphalos.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/omphalos. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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