firmament

American  

[fur-muh-muhnt] / ˈfɜr mə mənt /

noun

1. the vault of heaven; sky.

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firmament British  

/ ˈfɜːməmənt, ˌfɜːməˈmɛntəl /

noun

1. the expanse of the sky; heavens

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Other Word Forms

• firmamental adjective

Etymology

Origin of firmament

1250–1300; Middle English < Late Latin firmāmentum sky, Latin: support, prop, stay, equivalent to firmā ( re ) to strengthen, support ( firm ² ) + -mentum -ment

Example Sentences

The pre-Revolutionary era aligned with advances in knowledge of the heavenly bodies, sparked by telescopes and a firmament not-yet-obstructed by skyscrapers and pollution.

From The Wall Street Journal

Still, his place in the basketball firmament was long since secured.

From The Wall Street Journal

Even Simon Harley-Dickinson must have wondered, from his ever-changing position in the theatrical firmament: What had become of Alexander, Beowulf, and Cassiopeia Incorrigible, the three wards of Lord Fredrick Ashton, of Ashton Place, England?

From Literature

A century on, the place of all three in the firmament is secure.

From The Wall Street Journal

Time and cultural amnesia restored all these stars to the firmament of our good graces, as I’m sure will happen with most of these comedians.

From Salon