astronomer
Americannoun
-
astronomers
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of astronomer
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English; see origin at astronomy, -er 1
Explanation
A scientist who studies the objects in the sky, including planets, galaxies, black holes, and stars, is called an astronomer. These days, the terms astronomer and astrophysicist are used interchangeably, to talk about any physicist who specializes in celestial bodies and the forces that affect them. Astronomers use telescopes and cameras to observe the stars and other objects in the sky, and they often use complicated math to make predictions and solve puzzles about their movements and locations. The Greek root, astronomia, literally means "star arrangement."
Vocabulary lists containing astronomer
Occupations
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Space Science (Astronomy) - Introductory
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astro, aster
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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.
See Examples For:
For comparison, it’s estimated that SpaceX has roughly 11,100 working Starlink satellites, according to data from the astronomer Jonathan McDowell.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 20, 2026
Dr Greg Brown, astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, said the entries from the 18th year of the competition demonstrated "skill and innovation" coupled with improvements in technology.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
While Amazon has 392 satellites in space, according to data from astronomer Jonathan McDowell, only 315 are in the proper operational orbit.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 8, 2026
Among the higher-profile entries are “Pete Townshend: Behind Blue Eyes,” a portrait of the Who guitarist and songwriter, and Nanette Burstein’s “Carl Sagan: We Are Made of Star Stuff,” about the astronomer and science communicator.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
There might be philosophical reasons for preferring one to the other, but an astronomer could happily use either to perform calculations.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
That added sensitivity could help astronomers discover more planets during their earliest stages of formation and close one of the biggest observational gaps in exoplanet science.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 17, 2026
By studying the molecules in this coma, astronomers could identify the chemical makeup of material carried by the comet.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 9, 2026
ALMA's high resolution for imaging also allowed astronomers to track how different molecules are released and travel away from the comet.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 9, 2026
That connection supports the idea that more distant remnant radio galaxies may fade faster, reducing the amount of time during which astronomers can detect them.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 4, 2026
This cannot be true in any absolute sense; Galileo’s telescope transformed the world of astronomers before they had any new words for what they could now see—before they even had the word ‘telescope’.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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.
