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Cygnus

American  
[sig-nuhs] / ˈsɪg nəs /

noun

Astronomy.
  1. the Swan, a northern constellation southwest of Draco, containing the bright star Deneb.


Cygnus British  
/ ˈsɪɡnəs /

noun

  1. a constellation in the N hemisphere lying between Pegasus and Draco in the Milky Way. The constellation contains the Cygnus Loop supernova remnant, the intense radio galaxy Cygnus A, and the intense galactic X-ray source Cygnus X–1, which is probably a black hole

"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

Cygnus Scientific  
/ sĭgnəs /
  1. A constellation in the Northern Hemisphere near Cepheus and Lyra. Cygnus (the Swan, or the Northern Cross) contains the bright star Deneb.


Etymology

Origin of Cygnus

< Latin: swan; see cygnet

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.

Its corners are marked by Vega in the constellation of Lyra, the Harp, Altair in Aquila, the Eagle and Deneb in Cygnus, the Swan.

From BBC • Jun. 6, 2026

The study, published in Nature Astronomy, focused on Cygnus X-1, a well-known system that includes the first confirmed black hole and a massive supergiant star.

From Science Daily • Apr. 18, 2026

Back at Cygnus school, Karel says he would be "a little devastated" if a social media ban was enforced.

From BBC • Mar. 25, 2026

The team directed a balloon-borne telescope known as XL-Calibur toward Cygnus X-1, a well-studied black hole located roughly 7,000 light-years away.

From Science Daily • Nov. 23, 2025

In the case of Cygnus X-l, this is about six times the mass of the sun, which, according to Chandrasekhar’s result, is too great for the unseen object to be a white dwarf.

From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking

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