galaxy

[gal-uhk-see]

noun

plural

galaxies 

1. Astronomy.

   1. a large system of stars held together by mutual gravitation and isolated from similar systems by vast regions of space.

   2. Often the galaxy or the Galaxy the system of stars in which the earth and the sun are located; the Milky Way.

2. any large and brilliant or impressive assemblage of people or things.

   Guests at the party included a whole galaxy of opera stars.

Galaxy

¹

/ ˈɡæləksɪ /

noun

1. Also known as: the Milky Way System. the spiral galaxy, approximately 100 000 light years in diameter, that contains the solar system about three fifths of the distance from its centre See also Magellanic Cloud

galaxy

²

/ ˈɡæləksɪ /

noun

1. Former names: island universe.  extragalactic nebula. any of a vast number of star systems held together by gravitational attraction in an asymmetric shape (an irregular galaxy ) or, more usually, in a symmetrical shape (a regular galaxy ), which is either a spiral or an ellipse

2. a splendid gathering, esp one of famous or distinguished people

galaxy

1. Any of numerous large-scale collections of stars, gas, and dust that make up the visible universe. Galaxies are held together by the gravitational attraction of the material contained within them, and most are organized around a galactic nucleus into elliptical or spiral shapes, with a small percentage of galaxies classed as irregular in shape. A galaxy may range in diameter from some hundreds of light-years for the smallest dwarfs to hundreds of thousands of light-years for the largest ellipticals, and may contain from a few million to several trillion stars. Many galaxies are grouped into clusters, with the clusters themselves often grouped into larger superclusters.

2. See more at active galaxy See also elliptical galaxy irregular galaxy lenticular galaxy spiral galaxy

3. the Galaxy. The Milky Way.

galaxy

1. A large, self-contained mass of stars.

A common form for galaxies is a bright center with spiral arms radiating outward.

The sun belongs to the galaxy called the Milky Way.

The universe contains billions of galaxies.

Word History and Origins

Origin of galaxy¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English galaxie, galaxias, from Medieval Latin galaxia, galaxias, ultimately from Greek galaxías kýklos “the Milky Way”; cycle, galacto-

Word History and Origins

Origin of galaxy¹

C14 (in the sense: the Milky Way), from Medieval Latin galaxia, from Latin galaxias, from Greek, from gala milk; related to Latin lac milk

Example Sentences

Icy wanderers such as 3I/ATLAS offer a rare, tangible connection to the broader galaxy.

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When astronomers use telescopes to look at galaxies in space, they find some that are close by and further away—that is, some younger and some very much older.

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The supermassive black hole astronomers recently found is a billion times more massive than the Sun and a hundred times more massive than Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy.

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Throughout the history of the Universe, galaxies have been known for their epic dance-offs with each other, taking to the cosmic dance floor under gravity’s influence.

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In a recent study, astronomers found that even tiny black holes have immense power to shape galaxies—far more than previously thought.

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