Main Entry: ¹core

Pronunciation: \ˈkȯr\

Function: noun

Usage: often attributive

Etymology: Middle English

Date: 14th century

1 : a central and often foundational part usually distinct from the enveloping part by a difference in nature <the core of the city>: as a : the usually inedible central part of some fruits (as a pineapple); especially : the papery or leathery carpels composing the ripened ovary in a pome fruit (as an apple) b : the portion of a foundry mold that shapes the interior of a hollow casting c : a vertical space (as for elevator shafts, stairways, or plumbing apparatus) in a multistory building d (1) : a mass of iron serving to concentrate and intensify the magnetic field resulting from a current in a surrounding coil (2) : a tiny doughnut-shaped piece of magnetic material (as ferrite) used in computer memories (3) : a computer memory consisting of an array of cores strung on fine wires; broadly : the internal memory of a computer e : the central part of a celestial body (as the earth or sun) usually having different physical properties from the surrounding parts f : a nodule of stone (as flint or obsidian) from which flakes have been struck for making implements g : the conducting wire with its insulation in an electric cable h : an arrangement of a course of studies that combines under basic topics material from subjects conventionally separated and aims to provide a common background for all students <core curriculum> i : the place in a nuclear reactor where fission occurs
2 a : a basic, essential, or enduring part (as of an individual, a class, or an entity) <the staff had a core of experts> <the core of her beliefs> b : the essential meaning : gist <the core of the argument> c : the inmost or most intimate part <honest to the core>
3 : a part (as a thin cylinder of material) removed from the interior of a mass especially to determine composition