Sagittarius
Americannoun
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Astronomy. the Archer, a zodiacal constellation between Scorpius and Capricorn.
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Astrology.
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the ninth sign of the zodiac: the mutable fire sign.
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a person born under this sign, usually between November 22nd and December 21st; a Sagittarian.
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noun
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astronomy a large conspicuous zodiacal constellation in the S hemisphere lying between Scorpius and Capricornus on the ecliptic and crossed by the Milky Way and containing the galactic centre
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Also called: the Archer. astrology
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the ninth sign of the zodiac, symbol ♐, having a mutable fire classification and ruled by the planet Jupiter. The sun is in this sign between Nov 22 and Dec 21
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a person born when the sun is in this sign
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adjective
Usage
What does Sagittarius mean? Sagittarius is a constellation that is interpreted as resembling the figure of an archer. It’s also called The Archer. A constellation is a group of stars that appear near each other in the sky—especially a group that has been given a name. The point considered the center of the Milky Way galaxy is contained within the Sagittarius constellation. Sagittarius is considered one of the 12 zodiacal constellations—constellations that appear within a particular portion of the sky called the zodiac. In astronomy, the zodiac is the band of sky along which the paths of the sun, the moon, and the planets appear to move. Despite its basis in astronomy, the word zodiac is mainly associated with and most often used in the context of astrology, the nonscientific practice in which the positions of heavenly bodies at certain times are thought to influence or be correlated with human behavior and events. In astrology, zodiac refers to a diagram (often a circular one) representing the zodiac belt and showing the symbols associated with each of the 12 constellations or sections, which are called the signs of the zodiac. Sagittarius is one of these signs. It is situated between Scorpio and Capricorn and is considered the ninth sign of the zodiac. The other signs of the zodiac are Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Aquarius, and Pisces. The position of the sun in a particular portion of the zodiac at the moment of a person’s birth is thought to correlate with their personality. This is what people are referring to when they talk about their zodiac sign (or star sign or often just sign). People whose sign is Sagittarius are those born between November 22 and December 21. The word Sagittarius can be used as a noun to refer to someone who is born during this time, as in I was born in late November, so I’m a Sagittarius. The word Sagittarian can be used to mean the same thing. It can also be used as an adjective form of Sagittarius. Example: Sagittarius is my sign and my favorite constellation.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of Sagittarius
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin sagittārius archer, equivalent to sagitt ( a ) arrow + -ārius -ary
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A Gemini sun is known as restless and analytical, a Sagittarius moon brings an optimistic outlook and a rising Leo delivers confidence and charisma.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 13, 2026
The supermassive black hole astronomers recently found is a billion times more massive than the Sun and a hundred times more massive than Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy.
From Space Scoop ● Mar. 27, 2025
To locate C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS, face southwest and look roughly 10 degrees above the horizon to find the constellations Sagittarius and Scorpio.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2024
That would be Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way whose mass is about 4 million times that of the sun.
From Salon ● Apr. 16, 2024
Her- schel had been misled because of the copious amount of obscuring dust in the direction of Sagittarius; he had no way to know of the enormous numbers of stars beyond.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
Lady Enid pretended not to hear and tried to hasten with the astronomer towards the Sagittariuses.
From The Prophet of Berkeley Square by Hichens, Robert Smythe
To them and to the whole world—excepting Jellybrand's and you—we are the Sagittariuses of Sagittarius Lodge, people at ease, sir, living upon our competence beside the Mouse.
From The Prophet of Berkeley Square by Hichens, Robert Smythe
While pointing towards a grouping of stars called Chi Sagittarii on 15 August, he received a powerful blast of radio waves that lasted for 72 seconds.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 14, 2016
Comet 266P/Christensen will pass the Chi Sagittarii star group again on 25 January 2017, while 335P/Gibbs will make its passage on 7 January 2018.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 14, 2016
Paris found that they were both in the vicinity of Chi Sagittarii on the day that the ‘Wow!’ signal was detected.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 14, 2016
Late on June 25, the distant dwarf planet Pluto will be near the constellation Sagittarius, off to the left of the faint naked-eye star Omicron Sagittarii.
From National Geographic
One of its stars, α, is probably referred to by Al-Sufi in his description of Sagittarius; it lies nearly midway between β Sagittarii and α Gruis, and is the brightest star of the constellation.
From Astronomical Curiosities Facts and Fallacies by Gore, J. Ellard
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
