wormhole

[wurm-hohl]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR wormhole ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a hole made by a burrowing or gnawing worm, as in timber, nuts, etc.

a theoretical passageway in space between a black hole and a white hole.

Origin of wormhole

First recorded in 1585–95; worm + hole

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for wormhole

postern, trapdoor

Examples from the Web for wormhole

Contemporary Examples of wormhole

It offers the kind of refracted, wormhole narrative that generates comparisons to David Mitchell—deserved in this case.
Our Favorite Books of 2012: Tina Brown, Andrew Sullivan, and Others’ Picks
The Daily Beast
December 11, 2012

Historical Examples of wormhole

I really believe he gets more pleasure out of one first-class, sixteenth-century wormhole than the original worm did.
The Abandoned Farmers
Irvin S. Cobb
"I think maybe that speck isn't a wormhole, after all," said Phil, subjecting the apple she still held to another scrutiny.
Otherwise Phyllis
Meredith Nicholson
How about that wormhole, James, that we were worrying over before the separation of the upper table?
The Repairing & Restoration of Violins
Horace Petherick

British Dictionary definitions for wormhole

wormhole

noun

a hole made by a worm in timber, plants, etc

physics a tunnel in the geometry of space–time postulated to connect different parts of the universe

Derived Formswormholed, adjective

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 wormhole

1590s, "hole made by a burrowing insect" (in fruit, etc.), from worm (n.) + hole (n.). Astrophysics sense is attested from 1957.

wormhole in Science

wormhole

[wûrm′hōl′]

A hole made by a burrowing worm.

A theoretical distortion of space-time that would link points in space through a second set of paths, some of which could be shorter than the shortest path without the wormhole. It is not known whether workholes are possible. See more at space-time.