orbital
Americanadjective
noun
adjective
-
of or denoting an orbit
-
(of a motorway or major road circuit) circling a large city
noun
-
a region surrounding an atomic nucleus in which the probability distribution of the electrons is given by a wave function
-
an orbital road
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of orbital
1535–45; < New Latin, Medieval Latin orbitālis; see orbit, -al 1
Compare meaning
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Explanation
Something that's orbital has something to do with an orbit. A satellite's orbital path is the exact route it takes as it travels around the Earth. When planets, moons, or spacecraft move around other objects in an orbit — a curved, regular path — you can describe this movement as orbital. An orbital period is the length of time it takes a craft or body to make a complete pass around the object it orbits. Another way to use this adjective is to mean "relating to an eye socket," which is actually its earliest meaning. The Latin root is orbita, "wheel track, beaten path, course, or orbit."
Vocabulary lists containing orbital
Chemistry - High School
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Chemistry - Middle School
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Katherine Johnson (1918–2020) Tribute List
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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.
The strength of these oscillations also varied according to longer 100,000-year orbital cycles connected to changes in Earth's orbital eccentricity.
From Science Daily • May 27, 2026
Starlink has about 9,600 satellites in orbit now, which is about 15 times as many as the orbital fleet of the next largest satellite service provider, according to estimates from New Street Research.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 27, 2026
The results closely matched theoretical predictions for how tropical solar radiation should respond to Earth's orbital geometry.
From Science Daily • May 27, 2026
Later this year, China is set to mount an orbital test flight for its Mengzhou spacecraft, which is designed to carry astronauts to the moon.
From BBC • May 25, 2026
As soon as they try, their slightly different orbital speeds pull them apart.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
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.
