giant planet

American  

[jahy-uhnt plan-it] / ˈdʒaɪ ənt ˈplæn ɪt /

noun

Astronomy.

1. any of the four largest planets in our solar system, which in order of size, from the largest, are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.

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giant planet British  

noun

1. any of the planets Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, characterized by large mass, low density, and an extensive atmosphere

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Etymology

Origin of giant planet

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

Astronomers working with the Subaru Telescope in Hawaiʻi have identified two remarkable objects circling distant stars: a giant planet and a brown dwarf.

From Science Daily

The system is only 17 million years old and has a giant planet, HIP 67522 b, orbiting close to its star.

From Space Scoop

According to the study, the giant planet created rings and wide gaps in the protoplanetary disk, helping to solve a long-standing mystery: why many primitive meteorites formed several million years after the very first solid materials.

From Science Daily

A giant planet wrapped by a scorching atmosphere as fluffy as cotton, WASP-107 b orbits a star about 200 light-years away.

From Science Daily

Kane was studying a star system called HD 104067 about 66 light years away from our sun that was already known to harbor a giant planet.

From Science Daily