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Cepheus

[see-fee-uh s, -fyoos]
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noun, genitive Ce·phe·i [see-fee-ahy] /ˈsi fiˌaɪ/ for 1.

Astronomy. a northern circumpolar constellation between Cassiopeia and Draco.
Also Kepheus. Classical Mythology. an Ethiopian king, the husband of Cassiopeia and father of Andromeda.
Related formsCe·phe·id [see-fee-id] /ˈsi fi ɪd/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for cepheid

Historical Examples of cepheid

  • We will install it in the 'S Doradus' and the 'Cepheid' as a weapon.

    The Ultimate Weapon

    John Wood Campbell

  • Some stars pulsed, like the Cepheid variables, but in an orderly way.

    The Egyptian Cat Mystery

    Harold Leland Goodwin

  • And then for an instant, the Cepheid's bright wink was dulled; eclipsed.

  • Shapley has estimated the distances of many of these bodies, which contain a large number of variable stars of the Cepheid type.

    Astronomy

    David Todd

  • The "Cepheid," her sister ship, had gone along on seven of the trips, and added to the total.

    The Ultimate Weapon

    John Wood Campbell

British Dictionary definitions for cepheid

Cepheus

1

noun Latin genitive Cephei (ˈsiːfɪˌaɪ)

a faint constellation in the N hemisphere near Cassiopeia and the Pole StarSee also Cepheid variable

Word Origin for Cepheus

from Latin Cēpheus named after the mythical king

Cepheus

2

noun

Greek myth a king of Ethiopia, father of Andromeda and husband of Cassiopeia
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 cepheid

Cepheid

n.

type of variable star, 1904, from Delta Cephi, the name of the first such star identified, which is in the dim northern constellation Cephus, named for Greek Kepheus, a mythical king. With -id.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
cepheid in Science

Cepheid

[sē′fē-ĭd, sĕf′ē-]

Any of a class of variable stars whose luminosity fluctuates with an extremely regular period. There is a strong correlation between the absolute magnitude of a Cepheid's luminosity and its period. By comparing the apparent magnitude of a Cepheid to the absolute magnitude corresponding to its period, it is possible to determine fairly accurately how distant the Cepheid is from Earth. Also called Cepheid variable

Cepheus

[sē′fyōōs′, -fē-əs]

A constellation in the Northern Hemisphere near Cassiopeia and Draco.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.