focal

Etymology

Learned borrowing from New Latin focālis; synchronically analyzable as focus + -al.

adj

1. Belonging to, concerning, or located at a focus.
2. (medicine) Limited to a small area.

noun

1. (geometry, obsolete) One of two lines perpendicular to the axis of a cone such that the cosine of the angle between the line and the axis is equal to the ratio of the cosines o the semiangles of the cone.
   Again, if the plane of the impressed couple intersects the mean plane between N and C, it will envelope the cone whose focals are ON, ON′, and whose internal axis is therefore OA. 1877, James Booth, A Treatise on Some New Geometrical Methods, page 209
2. (Wicca) An object that is used to focus concentration when performing magic.
   Choose your focals to blend well with the intention of your magical work or ritual. 2000, Sirona Knight, Celtic Traditions: Druids, Faeries, and Wiccan Rituals, page 193
   And no witch leaves behind focals. 2019, Faith Hunter, Circle of the Moon, page 27
   I use focals for aura work sometimes. 2022, Tracy Deonn, Bloodmarked
3. The individual who is the focus of a study or review, when the study or review is based on that individual's interactions with others.
   As predicted, focals who were paired with peers produced significantly higher levels of reasoning at posttest ( M = 35.34, SD = 4.44 ) than did focals paired with adults. 1992, Merrill-Palmer Quarterly - Volume 38, page 198
   Thirty-one percent of the focals rated as low transformational by subordinates at time 1 were engaging in two of these three leadership/management styles, and 54% of the focals rated as low transformational were engaging in only one of the three styles. 1996, Ronald J. Heslegrave, An Exploration of Psychological and Psychophysiologial Measures as Predictors of Successful Performance Under Stress, page 69
   As this study covered 46 individual play behaviors, I did not have time to statistically analyze each individual behavior against all age intervals, for all three focals. 2006, Alison E. Cook, The Ontogeny of Play in Infant Female Bonobos, page 48
   Relevancy provides focals motivation to change by making the links clear between their behavior and the success of the organization. 2019, Allan H. Church, David W. Bracken, John W. Fleenor, Handbook of Strategic 360 Feedback
4. A representative of a group or class of people within an organizational system.
   Attempting to balance priorities across the exploration, science, and aeronautics programs requires constant and complex negotiations betwen the center focals, the projects they represent, and Langley's engineering directorates. 2007 Spring, Keith L. Woodman, “Nothing Weak About It: Thriving in a Weak-Matrix Project Environment”, in Ask Magazine, page 47
   Consolidate all focals' requirements: To be done by the Operations Manager. 2012, Raul Valverde, Information Systems Reengineering for Modern Business Systems., page 251
   Providing technical support to regional climate and WSG focals of all operational divisions on water resilience will amplify the larger pool of project officers. 2022, Asian Development Bank, Mainstreaming Water Resilience in Asia and the Pacific
5. A sign or similar type of marketing material designed to draw attention to special deals.
   Gesturing at the cleanliness of the design, Medill says, “Originally we had 'focals,'“—signs that call out special offers—“but they blocked eyeballs.” 2007, David Weinberger, Everything Is Miscellaneous
6. The central or most important element of something; a focal element.
   We become "native speakers," but variably with respect to numerous valued/powered criteria of truth/goodness/beauty (focals) and their derivative values which "leave" "some” more valuable ( as speakers ) than others. 1997, Lewis Acrelius Froman, Language and Power, page 100
   When using supporting flowers, consider their size and shape in relation to the focals and how the colour supports and enhances them. 2022, Celestina Robertson, Cut Flowers: Bloom Gardener's Guide, page 25
7. A major point of interest; an attraction.
   In the Visual Survey Analysis Report, focals are divided into four categories; visual, historical, symbolic, and cultural focals. Focals might correspond to the Kevin Lynch definition of landmarks. 1978, New Orleans region transportation study, page 29
8. An exemplar of a concept.
   So informants, like languages, show a stable, agreed upon placement of focals, but considerable variability in the boundaries for the extensions of terms. 1995, Roy G. D'Andrade, The Development of Cognitive Anthropology, page 108