Uranus

American  

[yoor-uh-nuhs, yoo-rey-] / ˈjʊər ə nəs, jʊˈreɪ- /

noun

1. Astronomy. the planet seventh in order from the sun, having an equatorial diameter of 32,600 miles (56,460 km), a mean distance from the sun of 1,784 million miles (2,871 million km), a period of revolution of 84.07 years, and 15 moons.

2. Classical Mythology. Also the personification of Heaven and ruler of the world, son and husband of Gaia (Earth) and father of the Titans, who was castrated and dethroned by his youngest son, Cronus, at the instigation of Gaia.

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Uranus ¹ British  

/ ˈjʊrənəs, jʊˈreɪnəs /

noun

1. one of the giant planets, the seventh planet from the sun, sometimes visible to the naked eye. It has 27 satellites, a ring system, and an axis of rotation almost lying in the plane of the orbit. Mean distance from sun: 2870 million km; period of revolution around sun: 84 years; period of axial rotation: 17.23 hours; diameter and mass: 4 and 14.5 times that of earth respectively

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Uranus ² British  

/ jʊˈreɪnəs, ˈjʊrənəs /

noun

1. Greek myth the personification of the sky, who, as a god, ruled the universe and fathered the Titans and Cyclopes on his wife and mother Gaea (earth). He was overthrown by his son Cronus

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Uranus Scientific  

/ yr′ə-nəs,y-rā′- /

1. The seventh planet from the Sun and the third largest, with a diameter about four times that of Earth. Though slightly larger than Nepture, Uranus is the least massive of the four gas giants and is the only one with no internal heat source. A cloud layer of frozen methane gives it a faint bluish-green color, and it is encircled by a thin system of 11 rings and 27 moons. Uranus's axis is tilted 98° from the vertical—the greatest such tilt in the solar system—with the result that its poles are in continuous darkness or continuous sunlight for nearly half of its 84-year orbital period.

2. See Table at solar system

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Uranus Cultural  

1. In astronomy, the seventh major planet from the sun, named for the Greek god of the sky. Uranus was the first planet discovered in modern times (1781). (See solar system.)

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Etymology

Origin of Uranus

From Latin Ūranus, from Greek Ouranós; Uranus def. 2 was first recorded in 1700–10, and Uranus def. 1 in 1780–85

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Uranus

The uncertainty in funding has put on hold future missions to Uranus, Venus and Enceladus, and a return of rock and soil samples from Mars, Dreier said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026

This year, it coincides with the start of the Uranus return, an event only some people experience in their lifetime since it takes the planet roughly 84 years to orbit the sun.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 13, 2026

Many Kuiper Belt objects – also referred to as trans-Neptunian objects – have been discovered orbiting the Sun, but like Uranus they don’t do so in a continuous expected direction.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 9, 2026

Studying Uranus could also help scientists better understand similar planets beyond our solar system, since ice giants appear to be common throughout the Milky Way.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 3, 2026

The giant gas worlds, Neptune, Uranus, Saturn—the jewel of the solar system—and Jupiter all have an entourage of icy moons.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

Related Words

• earth