nexus

Noun

nexus (countable and uncountable, plural nexuses or nexusses or (rare) nexus or (hypercorrect) nexi or (misconstruction) nexii)

1. A form or state of connection.

   Synonyms:

   bond, junction, link, tie, combination, composite, conjunction, fusion, juncture, melding

   1. (Canada, US) The relationship between a vendor and a jurisdiction for the purpose of taxation, established for example by the vendor operating a physical store in that jurisdiction.
2. A connected group; a network, a web.
   • Sunday's election pits Move Forward and the billionaire Shinawatra family's Pheu Thai against ruling parties backed by a nexus of old money, conservatives and generals with influence over key institutions involved in two decades of upheaval in Southeast Asia's second-biggest economy.2023 May 14, Panarat Thepgumpanat, Panu Wongcha-um, “Thailand's opposition opens up big election lead as army parties slide”, in Reuters
3. A centre or focus of something.
   • More than just a corporate juggernaut, Nvidia also has become an instrument of statecraft, operating at the nexus of advanced technology, diplomacy, and geopolitics.2025 December 11, Charlie Campbell, Andrew R. Chow and Billy Perrigo, “The Architects of AI Are TIME’s 2025 Person of the Year”, in Time

   Synonyms:

   hub, junction

4. In the work of the Danish linguist Otto Jespersen (1860–1943): a group of words expressing two concepts in one unit (such as a clause or sentence).
5. (Ancient-Rome, historical) A person who had contracted a nexum or obligation of such a kind that, if they failed to pay, their creditor could compel them to work as a servant until the debt was paid; an indentured servant.