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Which astronomer introduced the word focus as a mathematical term?

focus

[foh-kuhs] / ˈfoʊ kΙ™s /
NOUN
center or object of attention
Synonyms
Antonyms




NOUN
point at which light or sound converge
Synonyms


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Mikel Arteta may be attempting to rebrand them "finishers" but there's only one phrase in the footballing lexicon to sum up today's focus: super subs.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

In Australia, investors will focus on remarks Wednesday by Reserve Bank of Australia Deputy Gov. Andrew Hauser for clues to the central bank’s next move.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

“He said, ‘Let’s focus on a seemingly idyllic small town, like in “Our Town,” and examine what happened and why.’”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

G7 nations pledged on Thursday to mobilise $2.5 billion to assist countries at risk of food insecurity, with a specific focus on fertilisers.

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

“Especially if you take the focus away from me with your public declaration of love.”

From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison

The fasting mice had better blood values, less fatty liver and liver inflammation and above all: they developed less liver cancer and had fewer cancer foci in the liver.

From Science Daily ● May 7, 2024

An ellipse is the set of all points in the plane the sum of whose distances from two fixed points, called the foci, is a constant.

From Textbooks ● Dec. 21, 2021

TRY IT #5 Graph the ellipse given by the equation Identify and label the center, vertices, co- vertices, and foci.

From Textbooks ● Sep. 23, 2020

Identify the center, vertices, co-vertices, and foci of the ellipse.

From Textbooks ● Sep. 23, 2020

Ellipses have two centers, or foci; the more elongated the ellipse, the farther apart these foci are.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife

Puerto focuses on a more common scenario: As documented in “The Turnaway Study,” people who seek and are denied abortions are likely to struggle with poverty, debt, underemployment, and troubles with physical and mental health.

From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026

Android competitors offer larger inner display areas, but Apple focuses heavily on the quality of the hinge and concealing the crease where the phone folds rather than sheer screen real estate, analysts say.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026

Finally, Mr. Marriott focuses too much on the limits of reading on cellphones without taking into consideration how common and how different reading is on larger screens, from tablets and laptops to desktops.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

Because awareness focuses more directly on observable behavior, people appear comfortable applying it to both humans and AI.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026

It simply focuses its gaze on the dark skies above.

From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer

"The metallic tip acts like an antenna and focusses the electromagnetic field in a tiny area below its apex."

From Science Daily ● Nov. 20, 2024

“This shocking news focusses our minds on Michael’s wife Clare and their sons,” said Roy Taylor, a professor of medicine and metabolism at Newcastle University who co-authored “The 8-Week Blood Sugar Diet” with Mosley.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 7, 2024

The unemployment rate has fallen from 8.5% in 2011 to 3.8% in 2023, said the think tank, which focusses on improving the living standards for those on low to middle incomes.

From BBC ● Apr. 14, 2024

This latest research focusses on how this happens at the structural level.

From Science Daily ● Dec. 5, 2023

Raffles, however, following the chronicles, focusses the overthrow of the Hindu supremacy in the capture of the city of Majapahit in 1478 A.D.

From A Visit to Java With an Account of the Founding of Singapore by W. Basil (William Basil) Worsfold

In a post on X, Herzog said he was "pleased" to meet Wang and their talk "focused on the relations between our countries and the situation in the Middle East".

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

She contrasted the situation with the early years of the internet, when companies such as Global Crossing focused on infrastructure and ended up in bankruptcy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

I think the public debate has really focused in this case on the question of whether the criminal law failed.

From Slate ● Oct. 16, 2026

“Right now, L.A. is focused on the first half and ignoring the second.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

He focused on a spot on the floor.

From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste

The first minister's speech focussed on reform of the public sector to save money, cut bureaucracy, and improve how services are delivered.

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026

But that didn't stop its shares from surging nearly 10 percent on Thursday, as investors focussed on its profit outlook.

From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026

Pushing through this is definitely not easy, England stayed focussed, they stayed in the zone, a huge shout out to them because that's not an easy one.

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

Across Caracas and La Guaira, many were focussed instead on Sunday services in churches to remember those lost and still missing.

From Barron's ● Jul. 5, 2026

“Partly on his interest being focussed on what he calls ‘the soul,’ which he persists in regarding as an entity independent of the physical environment, whereas, as I tried to point out to him ...”

From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley

Saturday’s demonstrations will be different, focusing instead on voter-participation drives.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026

He argues that focusing on the "science of learning" paid dividends with England's move up international education rankings.

From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026

Amanda also covers Asian equities, focusing on Southeast Asia and Hong Kong.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026

Instead of focusing directly on damaged cartilage, it targets the abnormal blood vessels that develop around an inflamed joint.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026

I think of how beautiful the view onto the planet was, but know Crick would grow suspicious if we had the window open when we should be focusing on our work.

From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera

"We spent the first 20 years of this century focussing almost entirely on counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency," said Sir Alex Younger, who was Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service from 2014-2020.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

It will also examine decision-making and risk assessment training, focussing on how officers are helped to make bias-free decisions and identify where immediate action like first aid is required.

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

"As intervention is required, the government in making appropriate interventions but we're already focussing on keeping bills down."

From BBC ● Mar. 22, 2026

They worry that all it does is belittle hard work and dedication, instead, focussing on appearance and the pressure to look a certain way.

From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2025

Occasionally, focussing on a linguistic alteration can mislead us into thinking that something important has happened when it hasn’t, or that something happened at a particular moment when it actually happened earlier.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton


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