ハブ

はぶ
noun
hub, center
1. hub, center, nexus
A central point of activity, connection, or distribution. Used for transportation hubs, network hubs, and figurative centers of activity.
To function as a hub airport.
この駅(えき)は交通(こうつう)のハブになっている。
This station serves as a transportation hub.

Usage

ハブ is most commonly used in transportation (ハブ空港(くうこう), hub airport) and technology (USBハブ, USB hub) contexts. It can also be used figuratively for any central point of activity or connection.

Watch out

ハブ also refers to a venomous pit viper (波布(はぶ)) native to Okinawa, but that is a different word.
ハブる (slang) means 'to exclude someone from a group' and is derived from 省(はぶ)く, not from the English 'hub.'

Common collocations