meteorite

American  

[mee-tee-uh-rahyt] / ˈmi ti əˌraɪt /

noun

meteorites plural

1. a mass of stone or metal that has reached the earth from outer space; a fallen meteoroid.

2. a meteoroid.

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meteorite British  

/ ˌmiːtɪəˈrɪtɪk, ˈmiːtɪəˌraɪt /

noun

1. a rocklike object consisting of the remains of a meteoroid that has fallen on earth. It may be stony (chondrite), iron, or stony iron (pallasite) See chondrite

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meteorite Scientific  

/ mē′tē-ə-rīt′ /

1. 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.

2. ◆ Meteorites that consist mostly of silicates are called stony meteorites and are classified as either chondrites or achondrites.

3. ◆ Meteorites that consist mostly of iron are called iron meteorites.

4. ◆ Meteorites that consist of a mixture of silicates and iron are called stony-iron meteorites.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• meteorital
  adjective
• meteoritic
  adjective
• meteoritical
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• meteorites
  plural

Etymology

Origin of meteorite

First recorded in 1815–25; meteor + -ite ¹

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."

Example Sentences

Meteorite hunts “are always incredible adventures,” said Dr. Jenniskens — an exhausting but thrilling way to spend a lifetime.

From New York Times • Apr. 29, 2021

Wesson had grown weary of seeing such finds being hauled away by East Coast institutions and protested that the museum’s claim to the Old Woman Meteorite was both arrogant and petty.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 18, 2020

After a few revisions, McKay and Gibson were told their paper, entitled "Possible Biogenic Relic Fossils in a Martian Meteorite," would appear in the August 15 issue.

From Salon • Jun. 13, 2020

Space fragment Meteorite hunters have retrieved a fragment of the space rock that lit up the sky over Botswana last month.

From Nature • Jul. 10, 2018

But the treacherous flyer was busy elsewhere, it seemed, for the Meteorite did not appear, and as the sun sank low, Dick breathed more freely and gave orders for the last meal before the battle.

From Tahara Among African Tribes by Sherman, Harold M.