galaxy

noun gal·axy \ ˈga-lək-sē \

|Updated on: 17 Aug 2018

Examples: galaxy in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of galaxy

plural galaxies

1 a often capitalized : milky way galaxy —used with the

b : any of the very large groups of stars and associated matter that are found throughout the universe

2 a : an assemblage of brilliant or notable persons or things

a galaxy of artists

b : world 11

remained galaxies apart on the issue
—Newsweek

See galaxy defined for English-language learners

See galaxy defined for kids

Examples of galaxy in a Sentence

The event was attended by a galaxy of artists.
they're a galaxy apart when it comes to politics

Recent Examples of galaxy from the Web

The high-energy neutrino reported Thursday was created in the fast-moving swirl of matter around a supermassive black hole at the center of the galaxy.

— author: sarah kaplan, Anchorage Daily News, "In a cosmic first, scientists detect ‘ghost particles’ from a distant galaxy," 12 July 2018
The high-energy neutrino reported Thursday was created in the fast-moving swirl of matter around a supermassive black hole at the center of the galaxy.

— sarah kaplan, chicagotribune.com, "In a cosmic first, scientists detect 'ghost particles' from a distant galaxy," 12 July 2018
In last night’s two-episode finale, Holden and his crew work to counter Ashford’s plans, ultimately deescalating the situation, and convinces the station to open up gates to the rest of the galaxy.

— andrew liptak, The Verge, "Humanity inherits the galaxy in The Expanse’s season 3 finale," 29 June 2018
As other tweeters noted, Ellison's excoriating view of his fellow occupants of the galaxy could be summed up in one of his most famous quotes.

— robert jablon, USA TODAY, "'Star Trek' scriptwriter Harlan Ellison, master of sci-fi literature, dies at 84," 28 June 2018
All of the atoms in the planets, stars and galaxies in existence account for just about 5% of the mass-energy density of the universe.

— amina khan, latimes.com, "After years of searching, scientists can finally account for all the normal matter in the universe," 20 June 2018
Much later, some 300 to 500 million years after the Big Bang, the first stars and galaxies formed — and the rest is history.

— dan falk /, NBC News, "What is the Big Bang theory?," 9 June 2018
The setting will be the village called Black Spire Outpost on the planet of Batuu, located, well, on the edge of the galaxy.

— dewayne bevil, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Disney World: New views of Toy Story Land, Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge," 7 June 2018
Astronomers rely on computational models of the stars, galaxies, and the universe to develop theories of astrophysics.

— jay bennett, Popular Mechanics, "The Fastest Supercomputer for Astronomy Comes Online in Japan," 1 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'galaxy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

The system of stars that includes our sun looks, in the night sky, like a broad band of light. We call this band the Milky Way. The idea of the whiteness of the Milky Way being similar to that of milk is much older than the English language, however. Galaxias, the Greek word for the Milky Way, was derived from the Greek gala, “milk.” English galaxy, derived from Greek galaxias, was not used until the 19th century as a generic term for other star systems as well as the one in which we live.

Origin and Etymology of galaxy

Middle English galaxias, galaxie, borrowed from Late Latin galaxias, borrowed from Greek galaxías (probably originally conjoined with kýklos "wheel"), from galakt-, stem of gála "milk" (going back to Indo-European *glkt-, attested elsewhere only in Latin lact-, lac "milk," Armenian kat'n) + -ias, noun suffix, especially of natural phenomena

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

galaxy Synonyms

Other Astronomy Terms

gibbous, nadir, nebulous, penumbra, retrograde, sidereal, syzygy, wane, wax, zenith

GALAXY Defined for English Language Learners

galaxy

noun

Definition of galaxy for English Language Learners

astronomy : any one of the very large groups of stars that make up the universe
the Galaxy : the galaxy in which we live
: a large group of important or well-known people or things

GALAXY Defined for Kids

galaxy

noun gal·axy \ ˈga-lək-sē \

Definition of galaxy for Students

plural galaxies

1 : milky way galaxy

2 : one of the very large groups of stars, gas, and dust that make up the universe

History for galaxy

The band of light that crosses a clear night sky is caused by many faint stars. We call this band the Milky Way because it looks a bit like a stream of milk. The stars of the Milky Way belong to our galaxy, the Milky Way galaxy. The idea that the Milky Way looks like milk is much older than the English language, however. The ancient Greek name for this star system, galaxias, was formed from the Greek word gala, “milk.” The English word galaxy was borrowed from the Greek name.