apogee

[ap-uh-jee]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR apogee ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

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.

the highest or most distant point; climax.

Origin of apogee

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 gê the earth

Related formsap·o·ge·al, ap·o·ge·an, ap·o·ge·ic, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for apogee

apex, zenith, acme, climax, summit, peak, crest

Examples from the Web for apogee

Contemporary Examples of apogee

We missed the apogee of the hippie revolution becoming something more serious.
Argentina’s Drag & Drop Democracy
Jeff Campagna
March 12, 2014
Winehouse laid down the track in her attic studio in 2009, at the apogee of her hard-partying ways.
Amy Winehouse's Soul-Searing Final Album, 'Lioness: Hidden Treasures'
Chris Lee
December 6, 2011
It reaches its apogee in Bodrum, since nowhere in Turkey is the produce and seafood fresher or more abundant.
Into the Heart of Turkey
Sophie Menin
September 28, 2010
The apogee of all this dressing came on December 23, 1908, when he formed The Mark Twain Corporation.
America's First Modern Celebrity
Laura Skandera Trombley
March 20, 2010

Historical Examples of apogee

This was the climax of the prelate's favour, the apogee of his power.
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola
The apogee of the sun is synonymous with the aphelion of the earth.
The Sailor's Word-Book
William Henry Smyth
An irregularity in the motion of a planet by which it deviates from the aphelion or apogee.
The Sailor's Word-Book
William Henry Smyth
The second measures the distance of the sun from its apogee.
Smithsonian Institution - United States National Museum - Bulletin 240
Anonymous
The acquisition of this soul marks the apogee of the greatness of a people.
Appletons' Popular Science Monthly, April 1899
Various

British Dictionary definitions for apogee

apogee

noun

the point in its orbit around the earth when the moon or an artificial satellite is at its greatest distance from the earthCompare perigee

the highest point

Derived Formsapogean, adjective

Word Origin for apogee

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

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

Word Origin and History for apogee

"point at which the moon is farthest from the earth," 1590s, from French apogée, from Latin apogaeum, from Greek apogaion, neuter adjective, "away from the earth," a term from Ptolemaic astronomy, from apo "off, away" (see apo-) + gaia/ge "earth" (see Gaia). Adjective forms are apogeal, apogean.

apogee in Science

apogee

[ăp′ə-jē]

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

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

apogee in Culture

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.