standard candle

noun

Examples of standard candle 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.
Such supernovae also function as standard candles whose absolute luminosity is correlated with their evanescent, varying brightness; the Cepheids, whose distances can be calculated, are used to calibrate the absolute luminosity of the supernovae. Anil Ananthaswamy, Scientific American, 1 Apr. 2025 Yet astronomers who make the standard candle measurements point their finger at the standard model, or at least some unknown phenomenon that the standard model doesn't predict. Keith Cooper, Space.com, 22 Jan. 2025 To go farther, astronomers need a brighter standard candle. Bydaniel Clery, science.org, 13 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1879, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of standard candle was in 1879

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Standard candle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/standard%20candle. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on standard candle

Love words? Need even more definitions?

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