focus

Borrowed from Latin focus. Compare the inherited doublet foc.


focus

Zij plaatste een convexe lens op de focus.

Die jodocus heeft geen focus.

Focus is een belangrijk begrip in de informatiestructuur van zinnen.

Focus is an important concept in the information structure of sentences.

Afrikaans: fokus

Borrowed from New Latin focus. The figurative sense probably derives from English focus.


focus

The heat of sunlight at the focus of a magnifying glass can easily set dry leaves on fire.

(countable, optics) A point at which reflected or refracted rays of light converge.

(countable, geometry) A point of a conic at which rays reflected from a curve or surface converge.

Unfortunately, the license plate is out of focus in this image.

Not long ago, it was difficult to produce photographs of tiny creatures with every part in focus.[…]A photo processing technique called focus stacking has changed that. Developed as a tool to electronically combine the sharpest bits of multiple digital images, focus stacking is a boon to biologists seeking full focus on a micron scale.

2013 July-August, Catherine Clabby, “Focus on Everything”, in American Scientist:

(uncountable, photography, cinematography) The fact of the convergence of light on the photographic medium.

During this scene, the boy’s face shifts subtly from soft focus into sharp focus.

(uncountable, photography, cinematography) The quality of the convergence of light on the photographic medium.

I believe I can bring the high degree of focus required for this important job.

(uncountable) Concentration of attention.

My studies are my main focus right now.

(countable) Something to which activity, attention or interest is primarily directed.

The earthquake's focus was at exactly 37 degrees north, 18 degrees south, seventy five meters below the ground.

(countable, seismology) The exact point of where an earthquake occurs, in three dimensions (underneath the epicentre).

Text entered at the keyboard or pasted from a clipboard is sent to the component which currently has the focus.

graphical user interface
graphical user interface

(graphical user interface) The status of being the currently active element in a user interface, often indicated by a visual highlight.

(linguistics) The most important word or phrase in a sentence or passage, or the one that imparts information.

Candles, in fact, are an essential ingredient in many spells. They can be used as either the focus of the spell or as a component that sets the spell's overall mood and tone.

2004, Marian Singer, Trish MacGregor, The Only Wiccan Spell Book You'll Ever Need:

I ran through what I knew about spells from Mom and other witchcraft sources, but nothing matched what I was used to seeing in her magic work. Usually she used herbs and other plants as a focus for the spell.

2014, Kristen S. Walker, Witch Gate, page 180:

An object used in casting a magic spell.

en-noun

focus (countable and uncountable, plural foci or focuses or focusses)

foci (plural)
focuses (plural)
focusses (plural)

фокус

Borrowed from Latin focus (“hearth, fireplace”); see there for more. Doublet of fuel.
Kepler introduced the term into mathematics and the sciences in describing elliptical orbits of planets (quote from Nicholas Mee) :
"One of the interesting properties of an ellipse is that if there were a light bulb at one focus, then all the light that it emits would reflect off the ellipse and converge at the other focus. This is why Kepler originally used the name focus for these points."


focus

The difficulties of focussing colour-light signals on curved tracks to ensure maximum sighting distance were underlined in the recent official report [...] on a low-speed collision at Newcastle Central on July 25, 1960, between an unfitted freight and a diesel-hauled passenger train.

1961 February, “Talking of Trains: Collision at Newcastle”, in Trains Illustrated, pages 75–76:

(transitive) To cause (rays of light, etc) to converge at a single point.

You'll need to focus the microscope carefully in order to capture the full detail of this surface.

(transitive, optics) To adjust (a lens, an optical instrument) in order to position an image with respect to the focal plane.

I can't get the lens to focus.

The camera focuses automatically on the subject's eyes.

(intransitive, optics, of a lens, optical instrument, etc.) To adjust itself or be adjusted such that light from a scene converges appropriately to create a clear image.

The president focused her remarks on the newcomers.

(transitive) To direct attention, effort, or energy to a particular audience or task.

If you're going to beat your competitors, you need to focus.

(intransitive) To concentrate one’s attention.

I have to focus on my work.

(intransitive, followed by on or upon) To concentrate one's attention on something; to have as one's central point of interest, concern, etc.

The text box won't receive the user's keystrokes unless you explicitly focus it.

(computing, graphical user interface, transitive) To transfer the input focus to (a visual element), so that it receives subsequent input.

Whole pages of it are filled with masses of figures, generally single numbers added up in batches, and then the totals added in batches again, as though he were "focusing" some account, as the auditors put it.

1897, Bram Stoker, Dracula, published 1993, page 67:

(accounting, formerly) To aggregate figures of accounts.

en-verb

focus (third-person singular simple present focuses or focusses, present participle focusing or focussing, simple past and past participle focused or focussed)

focuses (present singular third-person)
focusses (present singular third-person)
focusing (participle present)
focussing (participle present)
focused (participle past)
focused (past)
focussed (participle past)
focussed (past)

фокусирам

to cause (rays of light, etc) to converge at a single point

фокусирам

(transitive, optics) to adjust (a lens, an optical instrument)

фокуси́роваться

(intransitive, optics) To adjust itself or be adjusted such that light from a scene converges appropriately

concentrer

(transitive) To direct (attention, effort, or energy to)

съсредоточавам се

(intransitive) to concentrate one's attention on something

kohdistaa

(computing, graphical user interface) to transfer the input focus to


focus

Borrowed from Latin focus, whence also Italian fuoco (an inherited doublet).


focus

la-noun

focus m (genitive focī); second declension

focī (genitive)
focus (nominative singular)
focī (nominative plural)
focī (genitive singular)
focōrum (genitive plural)
focō (dative singular)
focīs (dative plural)
focum (accusative singular)
focōs (accusative plural)
focō (ablative singular)
focīs (ablative plural)
foce (singular vocative)
focī (plural vocative)

Balkan Romance:

Aromanian: foc, focu

Istro-Romanian: foc

Megleno-Romanian: foc

Romanian: foc

Dalmatian:

fuc

Italo-Romance:

Corsican: focu

Italian: fuoco

Neapolitan: fuoco

Sicilian: focu

Insular Romance:

Sardinian: fogu, focu

North Italian:

Gallo-Italic:

Emilian: fûg

Ligurian: fêugo

Lombard: fœg, fœi, fœv

Piedmontese: feu, feug

Romagnol: fug, fóg (Faenza, Imola)

Friulian: fûc

Istriot: fògo

Ladin: fech, fesc

Romansch: fieu, fiug

Venetan: fogo

→ Byzantine Greek: φουγκού (phounkoú)

→ Turkish: fufu

→ Greek: φουφού (foufoú)

Gallo-Romance:

Catalan: foc

Franco-Provençal: fuè

desctree

Old French: fu
Middle French: feu
French: feu

Walloon: feu

Old Occitan: foc, fuec, fuoc
Occitan: fuòc, fòc, fuec, hoec (Gascony), huec (Gascony)

Ibero-Romance:

Aragonese: fuego

Asturian: fueu, fuegu, ḥuego

Extremaduran: hueu

Mirandese: fuogo

Old Galician-Portuguese: fogo
Fala: fogu
Galician: fogo
Portuguese: fogo (see there for further descendants)

Old Spanish: fuego
Ladino: fuego
Spanish: fuego

→ Catalan: focus

→ Dutch: focus

→ English: focus

→ Esperanto: fokuso

→ Finnish: fokus

→ French: focus

→ Galician: foco

→ German: Fokus

→ Italian: focus

→ Portuguese: foco

→ Russian: фо́кус (fókus)

→ Spanish: foco

→ Swedish: fokus

* The origin is uncertain. Usually connected with Old Armenian բոց (bocʻ).
* Some connect this along with faciēs, facētus, fax to Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂- (“to shine”). In that case, cognate at the root level with Sanskrit भाति (bhā́ti), Ancient Greek φαίνω (phaínō, “to shine”), etc.


focus

focusuri (plural)
focus (accusative indefinite nominative singular)
focusul (accusative definite nominative singular)
focusuri (accusative indefinite nominative plural)
focusurile (accusative definite nominative plural)
focus (indefinite singular)
focusului (definite singular)
focusuri (indefinite plural)
focusurilor (definite plural)
focusule (singular vocative)
focusurilor (plural vocative)

Borrowed from French focus or German Fokus.