inner planet

noun

: any of the planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars whose orbits are within the asteroid belt

Examples of inner planet in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Venus, like Mercury, is an inner planet to Earth, so it is often lost in the sun’s glare and can thus only ever be seen just before sunrise or after sunset. Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 16 Mar. 2026 Saturn Slightly higher than both inner planets will be Saturn, which at magnitude 1 may require careful scanning in the bright twilight with a pair of binoculars. Jamie Carter, Space.com, 26 Feb. 2026 The young, cool star is orbited by four inner planets, one of which has just formed a large moon in the aftermath of a giant impact, followed by an asteroid belt, four gas giants, a Kuiper belt, and an Oort cloud. Ethan Siegel, Big Think, 2 Oct. 2025 If our sun were replaced with Betelgeuse, the star would not only engulf Earth and all the inner planets but reach past the orbit of Jupiter, according to NASA. Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 26 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for inner planet

Word History

First Known Use

1770, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of inner planet was in 1770

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Cite this Entry

“Inner planet.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inner%20planet. Accessed 6 Jul. 2026.

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