Canis Major

American  

[key-nis mey-jer] / ˈkeɪ nɪs ˈmeɪ dʒər /

noun

Astronomy.

1. the Great Dog, a southern constellation between Puppis and Orion, containing Sirius, the Dog Star, the brightest of the stars.

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Canis Major British  

/ ˈkeɪnɪs /

noun

1. Also called: the Great Dog.  a constellation in the S hemisphere close to Orion, containing Sirius, the brightest star in the sky

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Canis Major Scientific  

/ kā′nĭs /

1. A constellation in the Southern Hemisphere near Orion. Canis Major (the Greater Dog) contains Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky.

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Etymology

Origin of Canis Major

< Latin: larger dog

Example Sentences

Sirius, the brightest star in the sky aside from our sun, is one of the stars that make up the constellation Canis Major.

From Salon • Sep. 14, 2022

It rises just before 9 p.m. in the southeast, visually barking in the constellation Canis Major.

From Washington Post • Dec. 3, 2016

An example is the Canis Major dwarf galaxy, which has a mass of about 1% of the mass of the Milky Way.

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016

The ancient Greeks thought of the constellation Canis Major as a dog chasing Lepus, the hare.

From National Geographic • Jul. 10, 2015

“Look, J.B., there’s Canis Major and Canis Minor. That means the big dog and the little dog.”

From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly