meteorite
Americannoun
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meteorites
plural
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a mass of stone or metal that has reached the earth from outer space; a fallen meteoroid.
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a meteoroid.
noun
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A meteor that reaches the Earth's surface because it has not been burned up by friction with the atmosphere. Meteorites are believed to be fragments of comets and asteroids.
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◆ Meteorites that consist mostly of silicates are called stony meteorites and are classified as either chondrites or achondrites.
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◆ Meteorites that consist mostly of iron are called iron meteorites.
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◆ Meteorites that consist of a mixture of silicates and iron are called stony-iron meteorites.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of meteorite
Explanation
A meteorite is a rock that falls to earth after a brilliant meteor has passed through the earth's atmosphere. If you've ever seen a shooting star at night, you can call what you're watching zip brightly across the sky a meteor. If that same meteor makes it through the atmosphere of the earth, its fire burns out and it becomes a meteorite, or a random piece of space debris that may have originally come from an asteroid or comet. The Greek root for both meteor and meteorite is ta meteora, "things in heaven above."
Vocabulary lists containing meteorite
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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.
See Examples For:
The meteorite was classified as a CM1/2 carbonaceous chondrite, placing it between the petrographic CM1 and CM2 categories.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026
"The Hillsborough meteorite contained 1.8% by weight of carbon and 0.07% of nitrogen, and had carbon and nitrogen isotopes typical for CM-type meteorites."
From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026
Only one meteorite was recovered, largely because it made its presence impossible to miss by striking a house.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026
Scientists found numerous amino acids among the soluble organic compounds in the Hillsborough meteorite as well.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026
On 13 September 1768 a large meteorite, weighing seven and a half pounds, fell at Lucé, Pays de la Loire.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
"Thanks to the homeowner's quick reaction, these are the most pristine CM1/2 meteorites we know of," said Jenniskens.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 8, 2026
Carbonaceous chondrites account for only about five percent of meteorites sampled on Earth.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 19, 2026
The process created carbon-rich dust resembling material that floats through interstellar space and is preserved inside comets, asteroids and meteorites.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 19, 2026
The database could also improve scientists' ability to interpret the history recorded inside meteorites and asteroid fragments.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 19, 2026
He hops off the rock-slide and starts picking up the meteorites and loading them back into his bag.
From "I'll Give You the Sun" by Jandy Nelson
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.
