Milky Way

noun

1
: a broad luminous irregular band of light that stretches completely around the celestial sphere and is caused by the light of myriads of faint stars
2

Examples of Milky Way 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.
These streams range from around 1000 light-years in extent to over a million light-years long, with the longest and largest ones making several loops or arcs around the entire Milky Way. Big Think, 4 Nov. 2025 In the early 2010s, Courtois was part of the team that discovered and described the Laniakea supercluster of galaxies to which our Milky Way belongs. Caroline Carlson, Literary Hub, 3 Nov. 2025 Variety packs from Hershey — maker of Reese's, KitKats and Heath bars — are up about 22%, while Mars, the company behind M&M's and Milky Way, raised prices about 12%, according to the Century Foundation, a progressive, independent think tank, and the Groundwork Collaborative. Luke Fountain, CNBC, 31 Oct. 2025 Groundwork Collaborative found that prices for Hershey’s variety packs rose 22% since last year, Mars variety packs (which contain Milky Way, M&Ms, Three Musketeers and Skittles) rose 12% and Reese’s Peanut Butter cups rose 8%. Ramishah Maruf, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2025 This image captures the Rubin Observatory beneath a dazzling sweep of the southern Milky Way galaxy, with the Large Magellanic Cloud glowing softly to the left. Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 24 Oct. 2025 That fuzzy little patch is our Milky Way Galaxy’s next-door neighbor, over 2 million light-years away, with just one light year equaling almost 6 trillion miles. Mike Lynch, Twin Cities, 19 Oct. 2025 The celestial dial depicts the starry sky and Milky Way in warm, volcanic tones, rather than cool, blue hues. Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 30 Sep. 2025 There are what, hundreds of billions of planets in our Milky Way galaxy alone. Quanta Magazine, 24 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of Milky Way was in the 14th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Milky Way.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Milky%20Way. Accessed 10 Nov. 2025.

Kids Definition

Milky Way

noun
1
: a broad band of light that stretches across the sky and is caused by the light of a very great number of faint stars
2
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!