The common pronunciation for both the comet and the astronomer after whom it is named is . This is the pronunciation usually recommended by astronomers. However, several variant spellings of the name, including Hailey, Haley, and Hawley, were used interchangeably during the astronomer's own time, a period when spellings even of proper names were not yet fixed, and corresponding pronunciations have survived. The pronunciation in particular remains associated with Halley's comet ; it is less likely to be heard as a pronunciation of Edmund Halley .
Named after Edmund Halley, who first predicted its return
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Now, the NFL’s answer to Halley’s comet is tearing across the sky again.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 13, 2026
When King Charles III is crowned on Saturday, he will undergo a ritual so rare in modern British history that it last occurred 70 years ago, roughly the wait between sightings of Halley’s comet.
From New York Times ● Apr. 30, 2023
Jackson’s host allows announcer Don Pardo to pose questions to contestants such as, “When is the next reappearance of Halley’s comet scheduled?” only to cut them off before they answer.
From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2019
The New York Times has hailed it a "cinematic Halley's comet", one carrying a whole community's hopes for greater representation in mainstream US culture.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2018
The Kuiper belt is the source of what are known as short-period comets–those that come past pretty regularly–of which the most famous is Halley’s comet.
From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson
Researchers say the famous comet known as Halley's Comet may have been identified as a repeating object centuries before British astronomer Edmond Halley gave it his name.
From Science Daily ● May 13, 2026
When longtime announcer Don Pardo asks Kroeger’s milquetoast contender, “When is the next reappearance of Halley’s Comet scheduled?” a buzzer instantly cuts him off.
From Salon ● Feb. 22, 2026
Visible until 7 November this year, the Orionids are an annual event and one of two meteor showers to originate from one of the best known comets in our Solar System - Halley's Comet.
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2024
The Eta Aquarid meteor shower is known for its fast fireballs, which occur as Earth passes through the rubble left by Halley’s Comet.
From New York Times ● May 2, 2024
Nyla waves her arms, and in an instant, just like when we stood among Earth and the moon and Halley’s Comet on the night of the party, Sagan’s surface suddenly surrounds us.
From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera
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.
