What is the opposite of Peripheral?

Question

I want to know the opposite of the word peripheral. For instance, one can have peripheral branches of the trigeminal nerve and upmost or something.

What is the right opposite word of peripheral?

As others have said, 'central' is the most likely term in common English. However your example is from medicine which may very well have a technical term, like 'main' or 'primary' or 'proximal'. — Mitch, Dec 28 '13 at 15:07
Here, it might be root. But this is really into specialist nomenclature. — Edwin Ashworth, Dec 28 '13 at 16:19
Another specialist antonym would be core as in google.co.uk/search?q=core+periphery+model — Sideshow Bob, May 16 '14 at 16:43
One should note that in computer jargon a "peripheral" (noun) is a device that is attached to a computer. Originally the term was used because the device would be external to the computer main box, on a cable, but over time the term came to mean, eg, a tape or disk drive built into the main box. I can't offhand think of a good antonym for this concept. — Hot Licks, Apr 21 '15 at 2:31

Andrew Leach · Accepted Answer · 2013-12-28 13:31:16Z

5

It's not clear what you mean by the "opposite" of peripheral.

If you say that peripheral means of the periphery, around the edges, then one "opposite" is at the centre, or central.

answered Dec 28 '13 at 13:31

Andrew Leach♦

89k11 gold badges172 silver badges279 bronze badges

You are right here. I took only one example. I thought originally other thing than central as acronym. I thought about some general term. – Léo Léopold Hertz 준영 Dec 28 '13 at 17:25
I opened a new question here what I was looking for: english.stackexchange.com/questions/143560/… Thank you for this answer nevertheless! – Léo Léopold Hertz 준영 Dec 28 '13 at 17:33

Add a comment |

1 Answer 1