protostar

noun

pro·​to·​star ˈprō-tō-ˌstär How to pronounce protostar (audio)
: a cloud of gas and dust in space believed to develop into a star

Examples of protostar in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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The central young star, or protostar, weighing as much as 10 of our suns, is located 15,000 light-years away in the outer reaches of our galaxy. Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 12 Sep. 2025 This material bunches up into a disk around the young protostar. Keith Cooper, Space.com, 11 Sep. 2025 Beyond this star, ALMA also detected molecular outflows from four additional protostars, confirming that star formation is widespread even in these remote, chemically primitive regions. Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 7 Sep. 2025 Instead, with this tweak to dark matter, the early protostar that forms will instead remain in a large, relatively cool state for a long time, which can grow the protostar up to 100,000 solar masses or even more. Ethan Siegel, Big Think, 2 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for protostar

Word History

First Known Use

1947, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of protostar was in 1947

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Cite this Entry

“Protostar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/protostar. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.

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