apogee

[ ap-uh-jee ]
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noun
  1. Astronomy. the point in the orbit of a heavenly body, especially the moon, or of a man-made satellite at which it is farthest from the earth.: Compare perigee.

  2. the highest or most distant point; climax.

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Origin of apogee

1
1585–95; alteration (after French apogée) of earlier apogaeum<Latin <Greek apógaion (diástema) off-earth (distance), neuter of apógaios (adj.), equivalent to apo-apo- + gáïos of the earth, derivative of gaîa, variant of the earth

Other words from apogee

  • ap·o·ge·al, ap·o·ge·an, ap·o·ge·ic, adjective

Words Nearby apogee

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How to use apogee in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for apogee

apogee

/ (ˈæpəˌdʒiː) /


noun
  1. the point in its orbit around the earth when the moon or an artificial satellite is at its greatest distance from the earth: Compare perigee

  2. the highest point

Origin of apogee

1
C17: from New Latin apogaeum (influenced by French apogée), from Greek apogaion, from apogaios away from the earth, from apo- + gaia earth

Derived forms of apogee

  • apogean, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for apogee

apogee

[ ăpə-jē ]


  1. The point farthest from Earth's center in the orbit of the Moon or an artificial satellite.

  2. The point in an orbit that is most distant from the body being orbited. Compare aphelion perigee.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for apogee

apogee

[ (ap-uh-jee) ]


In astronomy, the point during the orbit of a satellite, such as the moon, at which it is farthest from the body being orbited. For planets in the solar system orbiting the sun, their farthest point from the sun is referred to as aphelion.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.