meteor means an atmospheric or meteorological phenomenon. These were sometimes classified as aerial or airy meteors (winds), aqueous or watery meteors (hydrometeors: clouds, rain, snow, hail, dew, frost), luminous meteors (rainbows and aurora), and igneous or fiery meteors (lightning and shooting stars).
meteor is pronounced /ˈmiːtɪ.ə/.
Why “meteor” is a great word
A luminous streak of light in the sky, commonly known as a shooting star, produced by a meteoroid entering and burning up in the earth's atmosphere. From Middle French météore, from Latin meteorum, from Ancient Greek μετέωρον (metéōron, 'thing high up'), from μετέωρος (metéōros, 'raised, lofty'), from μετά (metá, 'among') + ἀείρω (aeírō, 'to lift, to raise'). Unlike a 'meteoroid' (the silent, dark rock adrift in the void) or a 'meteorite' (the cold, heavy stone that finds the ground), a meteor is pure, transient spectacle—the brief, brilliant scratch of a cosmic match, the silent scream of a particle choosing annihilation over anonymity, and the perfect, public performance of a private death. It is a fleeting glory paid for by total dissolution.
Etymology
From Middle French météore, from Old French, from Latin meteorum, from Ancient Greek μετέωρον (metéōron), from μετέωρος (metéōros, “raised from the ground, hanging, lofty”), from μετά (metá, “in the midst of, among, between”) (English meta) + ἀείρω (aeírō, “to lift, to heave, to raise up”).
The original sense of “atmospheric phenomenon” gave rise to meteorology, but the meaning of "meteor" is now restricted to extraterrestrial objects burning up as they enter the atmosphere.
noun
- An atmospheric or meteorological phenomenon. These were sometimes classified as aerial or airy meteors (winds), aqueous or watery meteors (hydrometeors: clouds, rain, snow, hail, dew, frost), luminous meteors (rainbows and aurora), and igneous or fiery meteors (lightning and shooting stars).“Europe, where the Sun dares ſcarce appeare,
For freezing Meteors and congealed cold: […]”
- A fast-moving streak of light in the night sky caused by the entry of extraterrestrial matter into the earth's atmosphere; a shooting star or falling star.
- A prop similar to poi balls, in that it is twirled at the end of a cord or cable.
- A striking weapon resembling a track and field hammer consisting of a weight swung at the end of a cable or chain.
- Any short-lived source of wonderment.
verb
- To move at great speed.
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- bolide 87% match — An extremely bright meteor. vs meteor →
- meteoromancy 83% match — Divination by interpreting meteorological phenomena such as meteors. vs meteor →
- starfall 82% match — A great number of stars descending downward within outer space or the atmosphere; a meteor shower. vs meteor →
- airglow 80% match — A faint illumination in the sky due to photochemical luminescence in the upper atmosphere, now rarely observed by earthbound humans without the assistance of instruments. vs meteor →
- aeromancy 80% match — Divination by use of atmospheric conditions. vs meteor →
- ether 79% match — The substance formerly supposed to fill the upper regions of the atmosphere above the clouds, in particular as a medium breathed by deities.; The medium breathed by human beings; the air. vs meteor →
- wanderstar 79% match — A wandering star or other similar heavenly body; a comet; meteor; planet. vs meteor →
- stardust 79% match — Small fragments of dustlike material found in space; specifically, a type of cosmic dust that formed from cooling gases ejected from presolar stars, which was then incorporated into the cloud from which the Solar System condensed. vs meteor →