The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Koran \Ko"ran\ (k[=o]"ran or k[-o]*r[aum]n"; 277), n. [Ar.
   qor[=a]n; with the Ar. article, Alkoran, Alcoran; = Turk.
   Pers. qur[^a]n, from Ar. quran, qoran, book, reading, from
   q[^a]r[^a], read. See Alcoran.]
   The Scriptures of the Muslims, containing the professed
   revelations to Mohammed; -- called also Alcoran. [Written
   also Kuran or Quran, Also rarely Coran and Core.]

   Note: The Koran is the sacred book of the Muslims (sometimes
         called Mohammedans by non-Muslims, a term considered
         offensive by some Muslims). It is the most important
         foundation on which Islam rests and it is held in the
         highest veneration by all Islamic sects. When being
         read it must be kept on a stand elevated above the
         floor. No one may read it or touch it without first
         making a legal ablution. It is written in the Arabic
         language, and its style is considered a model. The
         substance of the Koran is held to be uncreated and
         eternal. Mohammed was merely the person to whom the
         work was revealed. At first the Koran was not written,
         but entirely committed to memory. But when a great many
         of the best Koran reciters had been killed in battle,
         Omar suggested to Abu-Bekr (the successor of Mohammed)
         that it should be written down. Abu-Bekr accordingly
         commanded Zeid, an amanuensis of the prophet, to commit
         it to writing. This was the authorized text until 23
         years after the death of the prophet. A number of
         variant readings had, however, crept into use. By order
         of the calif Osman in the year 30 of the Hejira, Zeid
         and three assistants made a careful revision which was
         adopted as the standard, and all the other copies were
         ordered to be burned. The Koran consists of 114 suras
         or divisions. These are not numbered, but each one has
         a separate name. They are not arranged in historical
         order. These suras purport to be the addresses
         delivered by Mohammed during his career at Mecca and
         Medina. As a general rule the shorter suras, which
         contain the theology of Islam, belong to the Meccan
         period; while the longer ones, relating to social
         duties and relationships, to Medina. The Koran is
         largely drawn from Jewish and Christian sources, the
         former prevailing. Moses and Jesus are reckoned among
         the prophets. The biblical narratives are interwoven
         with rabbinical legends. The customs of the Jews are
         made to conform to those of the Arabians. Islamic
         theology consists in the study of the Koran and its
         commentaries. A very fine collection of Korans,
         including one in Cufic (the old Arabic character), is
         to be found in the Khedival Library at Cairo, Egypt.
         [Century Dict. 1906]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Cor \Cor\ (k[^o]r), n. [Heb. k[=o]r.]
   A Hebrew measure of capacity; a homer. [Written also core.]
   [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Core \Core\ (k[=o]r), n. [F. corps. See Corps.]
   A body of individuals; an assemblage. [Obs.]
   [1913 Webster]

         He was in a core of people.              --Bacon.
   [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Core \Core\, n. [Cf. Chore.] (Mining.)
   A miner's underground working time or shift. --Raymond.
   [1913 Webster]

   Note: The twenty-four hours are divided into three or four
         cores.
         [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Core \Core\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Cord (k?rd); p. pr. & vb. n.
   Coring.]
   1. To take out the core or inward parts of; as, to core an
      apple.
      [1913 Webster]

            He's like a corn upon my great toe . . . he must be
            cored out.                            --Marston.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. To form by means of a core, as a hole in a casting.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. To extract a cylindrical sample from, with a boring
      device. See core[8].
      [PJC]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Core \Core\, n. [Heb. k[=o]r: cf. Gr. ko`ros.]
   A Hebrew dry measure; a cor or homer. --Num. xi. 32 (Douay
   version).
   [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Core \Core\, n. [OF. cor, coer, cuer, F. c[oe]ur, fr. L. cor
   heart. See Heart.]
   1. The heart or inner part of a thing, as of a column, wall,
      rope, of a boil, etc.; especially, the central part of
      fruit, containing the kernels or seeds; as, the core of an
      apple or quince.
      [1913 Webster]

            A fever at the core,
            Fatal to him who bears, to all who ever bore.
                                                  --Byron.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. The center or inner part, as of an open space; as, the
      core of a square. [Obs.] --Sir W. Raleigh.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. The most important part of a thing; the essence; as, the
      core of a subject; -- also used attributively, as the core
      curriculum at a college.
      [1913 Webster +PJC]

   4. (Founding) The portion of a mold which shapes the interior
      of a cylinder, tube, or other hollow casting, or which
      makes a hole in or through a casting; a part of the mold,
      made separate from and inserted in it, for shaping some
      part of the casting, the form of which is not determined
      by that of the pattern.
      [1913 Webster]

   5. A disorder of sheep occasioned by worms in the liver.
      [Prov. Eng.] --Halliwell.
      [1913 Webster]

   6. (Anat.) The bony process which forms the central axis of
      the horns in many animals.
      [1913 Webster]

   7. (Elec.) A mass of iron or other ferrous metal, forming the
      central part of an electromagnet, such as those upon which
      the conductor of an armature, a transformer, or an
      induction coil is wound.

   Note: The presence of the iron intensifies the magnetic field
         created by a a current passing through the windings.
         [Webster 1913 Suppl. +PJC]

   8. (mining) a sample of earth or rock extracted from
      underground by a drilling device in such a manner that the
      layers of rock are preserved in the same order as they
      exist underground; as, to drill a core; to extract a core.
      The sample is typically removed with a rotating drill bit
      having a hollow center, and is thus shaped like a
      cylinder.
      [PJC]

   9. (Computers) The main working memory of a digital computer
      system, which typically retains the program code being
      executed as well as the data structures that are
      manipulated by the program. Contrasted to ROM and data
      storage device.

   Note: The term was applied originally to the main memory,
         consisting of small ferromagnetic rings, that were used
         to store data in older computers, where each ring
         representing one bit of information by virtue of its
         state of magnetization. They were superseded by
         electronic data storage devices.

   Syn: core memory, random access memory, RAM
        [PJC]

   10. (Geol.) the central part of the earth, believed to be a
       sphere with a radius of about 2100 miles, and composed
       primarily of molten iron with some nickel. It is
       distinguished from the crust and mantle.
       [PJC]

   11. (Engineering) the central part of a nuclear reactor,
       containing the fissionable fuel.
       [PJC]

   Core box (Founding), a box or mold, usually divisible, in
      which cores are molded.

   Core print (Founding), a projecting piece on a pattern
      which forms, in the mold, an impression for holding in
      place or steadying a core.

   Core dump See core dump in the vocabulary.
      [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

core
    n 1: a small group of indispensable persons or things; "five
         periodicals make up the core of their publishing program"
         [syn: core, nucleus, core group]
    2: the center of an object; "the ball has a titanium core"
    3: the central part of the Earth
    4: the choicest or most essential or most vital part of some
       idea or experience; "the gist of the prosecutor's argument";
       "the heart and soul of the Republican Party"; "the nub of the
       story" [syn: kernel, substance, core, center,
       centre, essence, gist, heart, heart and soul,
       inwardness, marrow, meat, nub, pith, sum, nitty-
       gritty]
    5: a cylindrical sample of soil or rock obtained with a hollow
       drill
    6: an organization founded by James Leonard Farmer in 1942 to
       work for racial equality [syn: Congress of Racial Equality,
       CORE]
    7: the central meaning or theme of a speech or literary work
       [syn: effect, essence, burden, core, gist]
    8: (computer science) a tiny ferrite toroid formerly used in a
       random access memory to store one bit of data; now superseded
       by semiconductor memories; "each core has three wires passing
       through it, providing the means to select and detect the
       contents of each bit" [syn: core, magnetic core]
    9: the chamber of a nuclear reactor containing the fissile
       material where the reaction takes place
    10: a bar of magnetic material (as soft iron) that passes
        through a coil and serves to increase the inductance of the
        coil
    v 1: remove the core or center from; "core an apple"

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

206 Moby Thesaurus words for "core":
   Bowery, Chinatown, East End, East Side, Little Hungary,
   Little Italy, West End, West Side, amidships, amount, average,
   axiom, axis, barrio, base, basis, beginning, bench mark,
   black ghetto, blighted area, body, bosom, bulk, burden,
   business district, cardinal point, center, center of action,
   center of gravity, central, central city, centroid, centrum,
   chief thing, city center, climax, commencement, consequence,
   cornerstone, corpus, crisis, critical point, crux, dead center,
   deepest recesses, diameter, diaphragm, distillate, distillation,
   downtown, elixir, epicenter, equator, equatorial, equidistant,
   essence, essential, essential matter, fabric, flower, focus,
   foundation, fundamental, ghetto, gist, gravamen, great point,
   greenbelt, halfway, heart, heart of hearts, high point, hub,
   hypostasis, import, importance, important thing, inner, inner city,
   inner essence, inner landscape, inner life, inner man,
   inner nature, inner recess, inner self, inside, insides, interior,
   interior man, intermediary, intermediate, intern, internal,
   intrados, inward, issue, kernel, keystone, landmark, main point,
   main thing, marrow, mass, material, material point, matter, mean,
   meat, medial, median, mediocre, mediterranean, medium, medulla,
   mesial, metacenter, mezzo, mid, middle, middlemost, middling,
   midland, midmost, midpoint, midriff, midships, midst, midtown,
   midway, milestone, nave, navel, nub, nuclear, nucleus,
   nuts and bolts, omphalos, origin, outskirts, penetralia, pit, pith,
   pivot, postulate, principle, purport, quick, quid, quiddity,
   quintessence, real issue, recap, recapitulation, recesses,
   red-light district, residential district, resume, root,
   run-down neighborhood, run-through, rundown, salient point, sap,
   secret place, secret places, seed, shopping center, significance,
   sine qua non, skid road, skid row, slum, slums, soul, spirit,
   staple, start, storm center, stuff, substance, substantive point,
   suburbia, suburbs, sum, sum and substance, summary, summation,
   tenderloin, tenement district, the bottom line, the nitty-gritty,
   the point, thick, thick of things, thrust, turning point,
   umbilicus, upshot, uptown, urban blight, vital center, vitals,
   waist, waistline, zone



The Jargon File (version 4.4.7, 29 Dec 2003):

core
 n.

    Main storage or RAM. Dates from the days of ferrite-core memory; now
    archaic as techspeak most places outside IBM, but also still used in the
    Unix community and by old-time hackers or those who would sound like them.
    Some derived idioms are quite current; in core, for example, means ?in
    memory? (as opposed to ?on disk?), and both core dump and the core image
    or core file produced by one are terms in favor. Some varieties of
    Commonwealth hackish prefer store.


The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (30 December 2018):

core

   1.  Main memory or RAM.  This term dates from the
   days of ferrite core memory and, like the technology, is now
   archaic.

   Some derived idioms outlived the hardware: for example, "in
   core" (meaning paged in), core dump, "core image", "core
   file".  Some varieties of Commonwealth hackish prefer store.

   [Jargon File]

   (2009-11-06)

   2.  An integrated circuit design, usually for a
   microprocessor, which includes only the CPU and which is
   intended to be incorporated on a chiip with other circuits
   such as cache, memory management unit, I/O ports and
   timers.  The trend in 2009 is to have multiple cores per chip.

   The ARM6, ARM7 and ARM8 are early examples, the Intel
   Core i9 more recent.

   3.  A varient on kernel as used to describe
   features built into a language as opposed to those provided by
   libraries.

   (2009-11-06)