orbit

American  

[awr-bit] / ˈɔr bɪt /

noun

orbits plural

1. the curved path, usually elliptical, taken by a planet, satellite, spaceship, etc., around a celestial body, as the sun.

2. the usual course of one's life or range of one's activities.

3. the sphere of power or influence, as of a nation or person.

   a small nation in the Russian orbit.

4. Physics. (in theBohr model ) the path traced by an electron revolving around the nucleus of an atom.

5. an orb or sphere.

6. Anatomy.

   1. the bony cavity of the skull that contains the eye; eye socket.

   2. the eye.

7. Zoology. the part surrounding the eye of a bird or insect.

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verb (used with object)

orbits, present (3rd person singular) orbited, past participle, past orbiting present participle

1. to move or travel around in an orbital or elliptical path.

   The earth orbits the sun once every 365.25 days.

2. to send into orbit, as a satellite.

verb (used without object)

orbits, present (3rd person singular) orbited, past participle, past orbiting present participle

1. to go or travel in an orbit.

orbit British  

/ ˈɔːbɪt /

noun

1. astronomy the curved path, usually elliptical, followed by a planet, satellite, comet, etc, in its motion around another celestial body under the influence of gravitation

2. a range or field of action or influence; sphere

   he is out of my orbit

3. Nontechnical name: eye socket.  anatomy the bony cavity containing the eyeball

4. zoology

   1. the skin surrounding the eye of a bird

   2. the hollow in which lies the eye or eyestalk of an insect or other arthropod

5. physics the path of an electron in its motion around the nucleus of an atom

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verb

1. to move around (a body) in a curved path, usually circular or elliptical

2. (tr) to send (a satellite, spacecraft, etc) into orbit

3. (intr) to move in or as if in an orbit

orbit Scientific  

/ ôr′bĭt /

1. The path followed by a celestial body or artificial satellite as it revolves around another body due to the force of gravity. Orbits are nearly elliptical or circular in shape and are very closely approximated by Kepler's laws of planetary motion.

2. One complete revolution of such a body.

3. See Note at solar system

4. A stable quantum state of an electron (or other particle) in motion around an atomic nucleus.

5. See more at orbital

6. Either of two bony hollows in the skull containing the eye and its associated structures.

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1. To move in an orbit around another body.

2. To put into an orbit, as a satellite is put into orbit around the Earth.

orbit Cultural  

1. In astronomy, the path followed by an object revolving around another object, under the influence of gravitation (see satellite). In physics, the path followed by an electron within an atom. The planets follow elliptical orbits around the sun (see ellipse).

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orbit Idioms  

1. see in orbit.

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Discover More

Informally, something is “in orbit” when its actions are controlled by an external agency or force: “The countries of eastern Europe were once in the orbit of the Soviet Union.”

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonorbiting
  adjective
• orbitary
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• orbits
  plural

Participles

• orbiting
  present
• orbited
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• orbit
  simple
• orbits
  simple
• have orbited
  perfect
• has orbited
  perfect
• am orbiting
  progressive
• are orbiting
  progressive
• is orbiting
  progressive
• have been orbiting
  perfect progressive
• has been orbiting
  perfect progressive

Past

• orbited
  simple
• had orbited
  perfect
• was orbiting
  progressive
• were orbiting
  progressive
• had been orbiting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will orbit
  simple
• will have orbited
  perfect
• will be orbiting
  progressive
• will have been orbiting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of orbit

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin orbita wheel track, course, circuit

Explanation

To orbit is to follow a circular or elliptical path around a central body. Usually a planet, moon or satellite is described as orbiting, but a child who has too much sugar can sometimes orbit around his parents in an annoying fashion. Orbit comes from the Latin orbita, “course,” or “track.” The verb orbit is the act of revolving around another object, usually on a circular or elliptical course. Many planets, moons, stars, meteors spacecraft and other objects in outer space orbit around each other. Electrons also orbit around the nucleus of an atom. The noun orbit is the path the object in orbit takes: "The Earth’s orbit around the Sun takes one year to complete."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

orbit orbits orbited orbiting

In this configuration, an asteroid travels around the Sun three times during every single orbit completed by Jupiter.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 18, 2026

In her early twenties, she came into Epstein's orbit when she visited a Paris agency and met modelling scout Daniel Siad.

From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026

Weir and a small crew are sent on a recovery mission after the lost spaceship, the Event Horizon, suddenly reappears in orbit around Neptune, issuing a distress signal.

From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2026

The company said Wednesday that it now expects about 45 satellites to be in orbit in early 2027.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 16, 2026

But Charles Chiltington knew the answer: “It was the first spacecraft to orbit the moon.”

From "Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library" by Chris Grabenstein

As a result, the resonance acts like an escape route from the main asteroid belt, pushing objects into elongated orbits that cross the paths of planets.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 18, 2026

For instance, G 203-47's red dwarf rotates once every 100 or so days, but orbits its white dwarf every 14.9 days, meaning they are not tidally synced.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

The company projects Starship will begin launching to lower-Earth orbits in the second half of this year, but it isn’t clear when the company could get its rockets to the orbits required by StormWall.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026

Donaldjohanson has remained in the asteroid belt since its formation, while Bennu and Ryugu eventually migrated into near-Earth orbits that periodically bring them close to our planet.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 25, 2026

They spun in slow orbits around the two women, singing their spirit songs and watching, always watching.

From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older

Back in 1968, Apollo 8 orbited the Moon 10 times without landing.

From Barron's ● Apr. 7, 2026

Among the many faulty narratives that orbited out of the government, one asked us to consider the mental anguish suffered by these dispatched officers.

From Slate ● Feb. 12, 2026

But, all these years later, I was reminded that Ozzy, despite his well-crafted Prince of Darkness persona, was the sun that brought brightness and warmth to the familial chaos that orbited around him.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2025

"As with other stars orbited by exoplanets, the observed light curve of WASP-39 is flatter than previous models can explain," she adds.

From Science Daily ● Apr. 12, 2024

It was a good thing John Glenn had orbited the earth back in February.

From "Dead End in Norvelt" by Jack Gantos

The planet, called LHS 1140 b, is 48 light-years from Earth orbiting a red star much smaller and cooler than our Sun.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

More than 6,000 worlds have been discovered orbiting distant stars.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

This motion occurs when a star moves slightly toward and away from Earth as an unseen, massive object pulls on it while orbiting.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 15, 2026

Hainaut called for the number of orbiting satellites to be limited to 100,000 -- and that they be made dim enough to be invisible to the naked eye.

From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026

It is really a triple system, two stars revolving around each other, and a third, Proxima Centauri, orbiting the pair at a discreet distance.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

Related Words

• path
• pattern
• rotation
• trajectory