cosmonaut means an astronaut, especially a Russian or Soviet one. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 81 out of 100.
cosmonaut is pronounced /ˈkɒz.məˌnɔːt/.
Why “cosmonaut” is a great word
COSMONAUT — [Noun] A space traveler, specifically one trained by the Soviet or Russian space program. Borrowed from Russian космона́вт (kosmonávt), from Ancient Greek κόσμος (kósmos, "universe") + ναύτης (naútēs, "sailor"); first attested in English in 1959. Unlike "astronaut," which denotes a star-sailor from the West, or "taikonaut," which names a space-traveler from China, "cosmonaut" is freighted with the specific gravity of a rival dream. It is the grainy crackle of a voice from Vostok 1, the stark white of a Sokol suit against the black steppe, and the polished-metal sheen of a Mir module—the title for a sailor of a lost empire's cosmos, now adrift in the neutral lexicon of the sky.
noun
- An astronaut, especially a Russian or Soviet one.“Khrushchev’s answer came 60 years ago, on April 12, 1961, when Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin circled the Earth aboard a spacecraft called Vostok 1.”