dwarf planet

American  

[dwawrf plan-it] / ˈdwɔrf ˈplæn ɪt /

noun

Astronomy.

1. a spherical celestial body revolving about the sun, similar to a planet but not large enough to gravitationally clear its orbital region of most or all other celestial bodies. In 2006, the planet Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet.

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dwarf planet British  

noun

1. any celestial body within the solar system that is larger than a satellite but smaller than a planet, and that orbits the sun

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dwarf planet Scientific  

1. A celestial body that orbits the Sun and is massive enough to assume a nearly spherical shape, but that does not clear other bodies from the neighborhood around its orbit and is not a satellite of a planet. Dwarf planets include Ceres, Pluto, and Eris. This category was created by the International Astronomical Union in 2006.

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Etymology

Origin of dwarf planet

First recorded in 1990–95

Example Sentences

This broader interpretation also aligns with the finding that Pluto, a dwarf planet, is dominated by rock.

From Science Daily • Dec. 10, 2025

Pluto is now the most famous dwarf planet, though!

From Space Scoop • Oct. 15, 2025

But larger ones, roughly as massive as the asteroid Ceres or the dwarf planet Pluto, would get bigger on timescales of only a few hundred million years.

From Science Magazine • Dec. 13, 2023

Small amounts of carbonate minerals have also been found on asteroids, including the near-Earth asteroid Bennu and the dwarf planet Ceres.

From National Geographic • Oct. 12, 2023

Pluto got demoted from planet to dwarf planet, but we’d never treat each other as something lesser.

From "They Both Die at the End" by Adam Silvera