What term describes the movement of an object around a central axis?

The term that describes the movement of an object around a central axis is rotation. This term is specifically used to refer to the process where an object spins or rotates around an internal axis. For example, the Earth rotates around its axis, leading to the cycle of day and night.

In contrast, while revolution also pertains to movement, it describes the path of an object around another object or a central point, such as the Earth's revolution around the Sun. Translation refers to the movement of an object from one location to another without rotation, and pivoting generally implies rotating around a fixed point but is not specifically used to describe the movement around a central axis. Thus, rotation is the most appropriate term for this type of motion.