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sublunary

[suhb-loo-ner-ee, suhb-loo-nuh-ree]
See more synonyms for sublunary on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. situated beneath the moon or between the earth and the moon.
  2. characteristic of or pertaining to the earth; terrestrial.
  3. mundane or worldly: fleeting, sublunary pleasure.
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Also sub·lu·nar [suhb-loo-ner] /sʌbˈlu nər/.

Origin of sublunary

1585–95; < Late Latin sublūn(āris) (see sub-, lunar) + -ary
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for sublunary

Historical Examples

  • Providence has a hand in this, as in all other sublunary dispensations.

    Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. 327

    Various

  • Happiness in this sublunary state can scarcely be felt, but by a comparison with misery.

    Imogen

    William Godwin

  • William Quirke has a wish to remain in this sublunary sphere.

    Ireland as It Is

    Robert John Buckley (AKA R.J.B.)

  • Prudence with them is a matter of thrill like the rest of sublunary contrivances.

    Chance

    Joseph Conrad

  • He, as I knew, was not in a state to interest himself in any sublunary matters.

    The Shadow-Line

    Joseph Conrad

British Dictionary definitions for sublunary

sublunary

adjective
  1. situated between the moon and the earth
  2. of or relating to the earth or world
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Word Origin

C16: via Late Latin, from Latin sub- + lūna moon
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

Word Origin and History for sublunary

adj.

1590s, from Modern Latin sublunaris, from sub- (see sub-) + lunaris (see lunar).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper