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  • saros
    saros
    noun
    the period of 223 synodic months, equaling 6585.32 days or 18 years, 11.32 days (or 10.32 days if 5 leap years occur in the interval), after which eclipses repeat but are shifted 120° west.
  • Saros
    Saros
    noun
    Gulf of, an inlet of the Aegean, N of the Gallipoli Peninsula. 37 miles (60 km) long; 22 miles (35 km) wide.

saros

1 American  
[sair-os] / ˈsɛər ɒs /

noun

Astronomy.
  1. the period of 223 synodic months, equaling 6585.32 days or 18 years, 11.32 days (or 10.32 days if 5 leap years occur in the interval), after which eclipses repeat but are shifted 120° west.


Saros 2 American  
[sahr-ohs, -aws] / ˈsɑr oʊs, -ɔs /

noun

  1. Gulf of, an inlet of the Aegean, N of the Gallipoli Peninsula. 37 miles (60 km) long; 22 miles (35 km) wide.


Saros 1 British  
/ ˈsɑːrɒs /

noun

  1. an inlet of the Aegean in NW Turkey, north of the Gallipoli Peninsula. Length: 59 km (37 miles). Width: 35 km (22 miles)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

saros 2 British  
/ ˈseɪrɒs /

noun

  1. a cycle of about 18 years 11 days (6585.32 days) in which eclipses of the sun and moon occur in the same sequence and at the same intervals as in the previous such cycle

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms


Etymology

Origin of saros

1605–15; < Greek sáros ≪ Akkadian shār


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:

All eclipses belong to a family — called saros — that lasts centuries.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 29, 2022

But in my model, the 223-tooth gear rotates very slowly to turn the pointer for the saros dial.

From Scientific American ● Dec. 14, 2021

On the same fragment, Rehm found the numbers 76, a Greek refinement of the 19-year cycle, and 223, for the number of lunar months in a Babylonian eclipse-prediction cycle called the saros cycle.

From Scientific American ● Dec. 14, 2021

Named after the customary name of the Babylonian eclipse cycle, the saros dial predicts which months will feature eclipses, along with characteristics of each eclipse as described by inscriptions in the mechanism.

From Scientific American ● Dec. 14, 2021

This eclipse is a return, after one saros, of the eclipse of August 9, 1896.

From Astronomy of To-day A Popular Introduction in Non-Technical Language by Cecil Goodrich Julius Dolmage

While Saros follows a similar gameplay format, its developers have added features to let players tailor its challenges this time.

From BBC ● Apr. 30, 2026

Defenseman Shea Theodore made it 2-2 at 50:34 with a slapshot after Brad Marchand had thrown Saros off with a tackle as Canada kept pushing.

From Barron's ● Feb. 20, 2026

Roborock’s Saros Rover robot vacuum has two legs and can climb stairs, cleaning each step as it ascends.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 11, 2026

And fans also saw new footage from the upcoming Resident Evil 9, confirming the appearance of fan-favourite character Leon Kennedy, and PS5 shooter Saros.

From BBC ● Dec. 12, 2025

But a given Saros eclipse in its successive reappearances undergoes other transformations besides that of Terrestrial longitude.

From The Story of Eclipses by George F. (George Frederick) Chambers

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