The only difference between centre and center is the spelling of the word! One is used in the USA, the other in all the other English-speaking countries. There is no difference in meaning at all.

1. Center : used in the USA.
2. Centre : used in all other varieties of English (including in Canada).

Meaning of centre / center

Noun

1. The point that is equally distant from all sides of something

• The centre of the table.

2. The town or city centre is the geographical or commercial centre or core area of a town or city

• He works in the centre so it takes him a long time to get to work because of the rush-hour traffic.

3. The point / axis around which other things rotate or revolve

• The sun is at the centre of the solar system.

4. A political party that does not have extreme views

• A political party that has neither left-wing or right-wing views.

5. The player who plays in the middle of the team / pitch / court in team games.

• The centre in Volleyball is a defensive specialist.

6. The filling in a chocolate, cake, biscuit or pie

• The creamy centre of a chicken pie is made using lots of butter and double cream.

7. A point, location, area, person or object that is most important for a specific field, activity, interest, situation or condition

• Nashville is at the centre of the country music world.

8. The source of an influence, action or force

• The politician is at the centre of the controversy.

9. A place or group of buildings that serve a specific purpose, or provide a place for a specific activity

• There are yoga lessons in the sports centre every Saturday morning.
• The newest shopping centre in London is Westfield in White City.

Verb

1. To place in the middle

• To centre the text, drag the text box to the middle of the page.

2. Centre around / centre (something) on

To take place in or round a specific place / area

• The tourist industry in Portugal is centred mostly around the Algarve.

3. The focus or basis of something

• The plot of the film was centred around a family who was trying to build a new life for themselves.

4. To gather or come together in a specific location

• The university buildings are centre around the tower.

Centre / Center Collocations

1. Dead centre / very centre (meaning in the exact centre)

• I work in the dead centre of the city.

2. Centre for

• The University is a centre for scientific research.

Centre / Center Synonyms

(Noun)

1. Middle

Less formal way of saying centre (when talking about the central point of an object / physical location), and often less precise than centre. Can also be used to talk about time, to talk about the part between the beginning and the end.

• In the middle of the film / in the middle of the night.

2. Midpoint

The point in the middle of something.

• The midpoint of the circle.

3. Midst

In the middle of / the middle part or point of something. Usually used when talking about a person being in a crowd or group of people.

• He was in their midst.

4. Core

The centre of a sphere

• The core of the earth / of an apple.

5. Equidistant (adjective)

Something precisely in the middle of 2 other points (formal)

• The train station is equidistant from the university and the church.

6. Halfway point

The point that is in the exact middle of 2 other points

• I’ll meet you at the halfway point between the ice cream shop and the supermarket.

7. Heart

At the heart of something: in the middle

• The cathedral is in the heart of the city.

(Verb)

1. Centralize

To bring everything under one authority / in a single place

• The company centralised all their computers in one location.

2. Concentrate

To bring everything together

• The teachers concentrated their efforts to find a solution to the problem of the difficult pupil.

3. Unify

To bring people together under one idea / common goal

• Local business owners unified against the new changes the government were bringing in.

4. Unite

To bring people together

• Groups unite to provide healthcare in the city centre. 

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