adjective
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of, formed by, or relating to meteors
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like a meteor in brilliance, speed, or transience
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rare of or relating to the weather; meteorological
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of meteoric
From the Medieval Latin word meteōricus, dating back to 1625–35. See meteor, -ic
Explanation
Because meteors move through the sky so quickly, we often refer to something moving very fast as meteoric. A newly-popular singer might be said to experience a meteoric rise to the top. (The fall can be meteoric, too.) The "-ic" suffix on a word creates an adjective meaning "with the characteristics of." So meteoric means “having the characteristics of a meteor.” Both words take their origin from the Greek meteōros, meaning "high up." By the way, a shooting star is meteoric, being a meteor that is burning up as it plunges through the earth's atmosphere.
Vocabulary lists containing meteoric
A Need for Speed: Synonyms for "Fast"
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If I Stay
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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.
His meteoric rise in politics has drawn comparisons with Macron, who was 39 when he won the Elysee Palace in 2017, becoming France's youngest head of state since Napoleon.
From Barron's • May 22, 2026
The stock has gained 73% this year, part of a meteoric 699% rise from its initial public offering price of $36 a share on March 20, 2024.
From Barron's • May 20, 2026
There is also the meteoric rise of Raúl Castro’s grandnephew Oscar Pérez-Oliva.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 14, 2026
The enterprise market has emerged as a key battleground for dominance among leading AI companies, as Anthropic wowed the market with its meteoric revenue growth in the first few months of 2026.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 13, 2026
Dumbledore’s future career seemed likely to be meteoric, and the only question that remained was when he would become Minister of Magic.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
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.
