or nexus
ˈnek-səs
Did you know?
If you’re unfamiliar with the word nexus, the popular, long-running video game series The Legend of Zelda may provide an object lesson in its several definitions (and if you’re unfamiliar with the games, we will explain). When nexus came into English in the 17th century, it meant “connection” or “link.” Eventually, people began using it to refer to a connected group or series of things, as in “a nexus of relationships.” In recent decades it has taken on a third meaning: “center” or “hub,” perhaps from the notion that a point in the center of an arrangement serves to join together the objects that surround it. Now, one might plausibly say that the 20 Zelda games (not counting remakes and spin-offs) themselves form a nexus, as each represents an installment in a long, twisty saga with numerous echoes and callbacks to other games in the series. Most of these feature the fictional land of Hyrule, which often presents magical nexuses to shadowy alternate dimensions (1991’s A Link to the Past), the past (2011’s Skyward Sword), or the underworld (2023’s Tears of the Kingdom) that the hero, Link (ahem) must traverse. As for nexus’s third meaning, Hyrule’s map is nearly always situated around a central nexus, or hub, in the form of the castle where the titular Zelda lives. (If you’re into gaming or curious about its lingo, don’t miss the article “Popular Gaming Terms Explained”).
Examples of nexus in a Sentence
Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 26 Apr. 2025
While these broad sustainability pressures mount — from climate impacts disrupting supply chains to growing stakeholder demands for environmental action — AI sits at a nexus.
—Cornelia C. Walther, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2025
Gibney even directed an episode of Billions, the Showtime drama about the nexus of Wall Street greed, political interests and dodgy prosecutors.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 15 Apr. 2025
For this reason, tattoos celebrating a city or country can only lead to confusion.
Tattoos of Mayan or Aztec images have also been used to designate people as gang members, even though these tattoos are clear expressions of cultural identity and do not necessarily have any nexus to gang membership.
—Beth C. Caldwell, The Conversation, 3 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nexus
Cite this Entry
“Nexus.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nexus. Accessed 7 May. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
nexus
noun
or nexus
-səs, -ˌsüs
Legal Definition
nexus
noun
Latin, bond, tie, from nectere to bind
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