extraterrestrial

[ek-struh-tuh-res-tree-uhl]

adjective

1. outside, or originating outside, the limits of the earth.

   People on earth have long speculated about the idea of extraterrestrial life.

   Cataclysmic wildfires could be expected if earth were to take an extraterrestrial hit.

noun

1. a being originating from beyond the earth; an alien from outer space.

   It was your typical sci-fi novel about extraterrestrials conquering the earth.

extraterrestrial

/ ˌɛkstrətɪˈrɛstrɪəl /

adjective

1. occurring or existing beyond the earth's atmosphere

noun

1. (in science fiction) a being from beyond the earth's atmosphere

extraterrestrial

1. Originating, located, or occurring outside the Earth or its atmosphere.

extraterrestrial

1. A descriptive term for things outside the Earth, such as possible civilizations outside the solar system, or objects, such as meteorites, that actually reach the Earth.

Other Word Forms

• extraterrestrially adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of extraterrestrial¹

First recorded in 1865–70; extra- + terrestrial

Example Sentences

The mission is scheduled to launch in 2028 aiming to probe the surface of Mars for signs of extraterrestrial life.

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The researchers hope these findings support future studies on how extraterrestrial soils might sustain plant life and encourage efforts to use mosses in developing agricultural systems for off-world environments.

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If I’ve been abducted and probed by extraterrestrials, is it inside information?

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Although every location on Earth is thought to have had similar chances of being hit by an extraterrestrial object over time, the evidence of past collisions does not survive equally well.

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The researchers discovered that as water moves through these plants, it experiences such intense natural filtration that its oxygen isotope signatures become similar to those seen in meteorites or other extraterrestrial materials.

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