suborbital

adjective

sub·​or·​bit·​al ˌsəb-ˈȯr-bə-tᵊl 

1

: situated beneath the eye or the orbit of the eye

2

: being or involving less than one orbit (as of the earth or moon)

also : intended for suborbital flight

Examples of suborbital in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Starship is still in the early stages of development and over the past year prototypes have exploded during brief, suborbital test flights. —Jackie Wattles, CNN Money, 27 Feb. 2026

Starship has flown 11 suborbital test flights over the past three years but has yet to notch several critical milestones needed to qualify the spacecraft for lunar landings with astronauts onboard. —Josh Dinner, Space.com, 27 Feb. 2026

The suborbital New Shepard rocket is the vehicle Blue Origin uses to send groups of six passengers at a time on brief trips to the edge of space. —Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 3 Feb. 2026

Grissom was the nation’s the second man in space, making suborbital flight of Project Mercury. —Orlando Sentinel Staff, The Orlando Sentinel, 26 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1803, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for suborbital

• infraorbital
• postorbital
• interorbital
• periorbital
• supraorbital
• orbital

Medical Definition

suborbital

adjective

sub·​or·​bit·​al ˌsəb-ˈȯr-bət-ᵊl 

: situated or occurring beneath the eye or the orbit of the eye

suborbital fat