aurora borealis

noun

aurora bo·​re·​al·​is -ˌbȯr-ē-ˈa-ləs 

: an aurora that occurs in earth's northern hemisphere

called also northern lights

Examples of aurora borealis in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The northern lights, known as the aurora borealis, create colorful ribbons of light in the sky, according to the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute. —Michelle Del Rey, USA Today, 10 Dec. 2025

The aurora borealis occurs when charged particles from the sun collide with gases in Earth’s atmosphere, creating those signature hues of shimmering color. —Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 9 Dec. 2025

The beautiful phenomenon, also known as the aurora borealis, occurs when such plasma and the Earth’s magnetic field interact, producing colorful light displays. —Rebecca Schneid, Time, 8 Dec. 2025

Use the short-term forecast tool to track where the location of the aurora borealis for the next 30 to 90 minutes. —Maia Pandey, jsonline.com, 8 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, literally, northern dawn

First Known Use

1707, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for aurora borealis

• allis
• balas
• callous
• callus
• chalice
• gallus
• malice
• malus
• palace
• pallas
• phallus
• talis

Kids Definition

aurora borealis

noun

aurora bo·​re·​al·​is -ˌbōr-ē-ˈal-əs 

-ˌbȯr-

: broad bands of light that have a magnetic and electrical source and that appear in the sky at night especially in the arctic region

called also northern lights