eclipse
Americannoun
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Astronomy.
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the obscuration of the light of the moon by the intervention of the earth between it and the sun lunar eclipse or the obscuration of the light of the sun by the intervention of the moon between it and a point on the earth solar eclipse.
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a similar phenomenon with respect to any other planet and either its satellite or the sun.
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the partial or complete interception of the light of one component of a binary star by the other.
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any obscuration of light.
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a reduction or loss of splendor, status, reputation, etc..
Scandal caused the eclipse of his career.
verb (used with object)
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to cause to undergo eclipse.
The moon eclipsed the sun.
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to make less outstanding or important by comparison; surpass.
a soprano whose singing eclipsed that of her rivals.
noun
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the total or partial obscuring of one celestial body by another. A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the sun and the earth; a lunar eclipse when the earth passes between the sun and the moon See also total eclipse partial eclipse annular eclipse Compare occultation
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the period of time during which such a phenomenon occurs
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any dimming or obstruction of light
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a loss of importance, power, fame, etc, esp through overshadowing by another
verb
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to cause an eclipse of
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to cast a shadow upon; darken; obscure
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to overshadow or surpass in importance, power, etc
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The partial or total blocking of light of one celestial object by another. An eclipse of the Sun or Moon occurs when the Earth, Moon, and Sun are aligned.
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◆ In a solar eclipse the Moon comes between the Sun and Earth. During a total solar eclipse the disk of the Moon fully covers that of the Sun, and only the Sun's corona is visible.
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◆ An annular eclipse occurs when the Moon is farthest in its orbit from the Earth so that its disk does not fully cover that of the Sun, and part of the Sun's photosphere is visible as a ring around the Moon.
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◆ In a lunar eclipse all or a part of the Moon's disk enters the umbra of the Earth's shadow and is no longer illuminated by the Sun. Lunar eclipses occur only during a full moon, when the Moon is directly opposite the Sun.
Closer Look
The Sun is about 400 times wider than the Moon and 400 times farther from Earth, causing the two to appear to be almost exactly the same size in our sky. This relationship is also responsible for the phenomenon of the total solar eclipse, an eclipse of the Sun in which the disk of the Moon fully covers that of the Sun, blocking the Sun's light and causing the Moon's shadow to fall across the Earth. A total solar eclipse can be viewed only from a very narrow area on Earth, or zone of totality, where the dark central shadow of the Moon, or umbra, falls. From this perspective one can view the Sun's delicate corona—tendrils of charged gases that surround the Sun but are invisible to the unaided eye in normal daylight. This is also the only time when stars are visible in the day sky. Those viewing the eclipse from where the edges of the Moon's shadow, or penumbra, fall to Earth will see only a partial solar eclipse. The orbits of the Earth around the Sun and of the Moon around the Earth are not perfect circles, causing slight variations in how large the Sun and Moon appear to us and in the length of solar eclipses. The maximum duration of a total solar eclipse when the Earth is farthest from the Sun and the Moon is closest to the Earth is seven and a half minutes.
Discover More
The term eclipse is also used to refer to a general decline or temporary obscurity: “After taking the title last year, the team has gone into an eclipse this season.”
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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eclipsernoun
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noneclipsedadjective
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noneclipsingadjective
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uneclipsedadjective
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uneclipsingadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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eclipsesimple
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eclipsessimple
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have eclipsedperfect
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has eclipsedperfect
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am eclipsingprogressive
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are eclipsingprogressive
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is eclipsingprogressive
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have been eclipsingperfect progressive
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has been eclipsingperfect progressive
Past
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eclipsedsimple
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had eclipsedperfect
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was eclipsingprogressive
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were eclipsingprogressive
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had been eclipsingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of eclipse
1250–1300; Middle English eclips ( e ), clips < Anglo-French, Old French eclipse < Latin eclīpsis < Greek ékleipsis, equivalent to ekleíp ( ein ) to leave out, forsake, fail to appear ( see ec-) + -sis -sis
Explanation
Have you ever seen an eclipse? That's when the sun, earth or moon cross paths and cover each other up temporarily. A solar eclipse happens when the moon blocks our view of the sun for a bit. A lunar eclipse happens when the moon is on one side of the earth and the sun directly opposite, so the moon disappears. A TV eclipse, perhaps the most serious of all, is when your dad walks in at the most crucial part of the movie and blocks your view of the TV while he lectures about taking out the trash.
Vocabulary lists containing eclipse
Essential Academic Vocabulary for High School Students, List 2
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Eclipse Vocabulary
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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.
See Examples For:
This would eclipse all other major job-cutting drives in the auto industry, notably Detroit-based General Motors's move to cut almost 50,000 jobs in 2009 as it declared bankruptcy.
From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026
That would comfortably eclipse last quarter’s backlog of $99.4 billion as well as Wall Street’s consensus estimate of $104.4 billion.
From Barron's ● Jun. 16, 2026
As a result of the dense mesh of fiber that AI data centers require, this year Corning anticipates its data-center business will eclipse its sales to telecommunications companies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
The next total solar eclipse visible from the UK is not due until 2090.
From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026
As they approached, the sun came out of a momentary eclipse behind a cloud.
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
The Beatles' prolific output between 1963 and 1970 understandably eclipses their solo material.
From BBC ● May 27, 2026
The NBA does not officially track “nopes,” those moments when players look at the rim, gasp as Wembanyama eclipses it, and abruptly change their mind.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
Some claims suggest that eclipses can trigger earthquakes due to the alignment of the sun, moon and Earth.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 18, 2026
The £262m deficit for 2024-25 eclipses the £179.5m lost by Manchester City in 2011.
From BBC ● Apr. 1, 2026
Alexander returned with a dusty volume about solar eclipses.
From "The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book I: The Mysterious Howling" by Maryrose Wood
These events have both eclipsed interest in Nazi crimes and invited comparisons between the Holocaust and these newer conflicts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
Never in NBA history have there been two players on the same team whose combined career on-court earnings eclipsed the billion-dollar mark.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
But they soon eclipsed it with 2025’s “Revengeseekerz,” a deliriously overheated mix of romantic yearning, internet score-settling and virtuosic production prowess.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
SpaceX also briefly eclipsed Microsoft, which is fourth on the list.
From Barron's ● Jun. 16, 2026
He’d stand in front of us, so colossal he eclipsed the sun, shaking his head so droplets would shower down on us like salty rain.
From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson
The 32-year-old clocked 20.81 seconds in the men's 50m freestyle, eclipsing Australian Cameron McEvoy's 20.88 which he set in March, but Gkolomeev's time will not be recognised by official authorities.
From BBC ● May 25, 2026
Average prices had fallen below seven figures for the previous seven quarters after first eclipsing the million-dollar mark in mid-2023, according to FactSet.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026
The 10 largest S&P 500 stocks now make up more than 40% of the index, eclipsing the dot-com-era peak.
From Barron's ● May 15, 2026
Many false signals can mimic planets, including eclipsing binary stars.
From Science Daily ● May 3, 2026
The light of day revealed fall’s early brilliance, chartreuse, gold, and orange leaves eclipsing the dark green of summer.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
