supergiant
noun
su·per·gi·ant
ˈsü-pər-ˌjī-ənt 
: something that is extremely large
especially
: a star of very great intrinsic luminosity and enormous size
supergiant
adjective
Examples of supergiant in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Hubble had previously been employed to observe that region of the universe, meaning the team had historical data from the region—before the red supergiant star met its end.
—
Isaac Schultz / Gizmodo, Quartz, 28 Mar. 2024
Early in the year, astronomers were mystified by the behavior of the dying red supergiant star in the constellation Orion.
—Eric Betz, Discover Magazine, 28 Oct. 2020
At that size during the red supergiant phase, the black hole’s outer layers should have swelled up to where the sun-like star orbits it today.
—Robert Lea, Popular Mechanics, 6 Dec. 2022
The star is a blue-white supergiant located 870 light-years away from the Sun.
—Elizabeth Gamillo, Discover Magazine, 5 Mar. 2024
The case for a neutron star grew as further analysis revealed SN 1987A’s progenitor had likely been a blue supergiant star about 18 times the mass of our sun—heavy but still too light to easily form a black hole.
—Jonathan O'Callaghan, Scientific American, 23 Feb. 2024
The constellation’s brightest star is the blue supergiant Rigel, located towards The Hunter’s left foot.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 1 Feb. 2024
Among the handful of San Joaquin supergiants that have given up more than 1 billion barrels of crude oil during their lifetimes, is the 47,000-acre Elk Hills field.
—Christopher Helman, Forbes, 14 Feb. 2024
The red supergiant Betelgeuse shines on Orion’s right shoulder.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 1 Feb. 2024
Isaac Schultz / Gizmodo, Quartz, 28 Mar. 2024
Early in the year, astronomers were mystified by the behavior of the dying red supergiant star in the constellation Orion.
—Eric Betz, Discover Magazine, 28 Oct. 2020
At that size during the red supergiant phase, the black hole’s outer layers should have swelled up to where the sun-like star orbits it today.
—Robert Lea, Popular Mechanics, 6 Dec. 2022
The star is a blue-white supergiant located 870 light-years away from the Sun.
—Elizabeth Gamillo, Discover Magazine, 5 Mar. 2024
The case for a neutron star grew as further analysis revealed SN 1987A’s progenitor had likely been a blue supergiant star about 18 times the mass of our sun—heavy but still too light to easily form a black hole.
—Jonathan O'Callaghan, Scientific American, 23 Feb. 2024
The constellation’s brightest star is the blue supergiant Rigel, located towards The Hunter’s left foot.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 1 Feb. 2024
Among the handful of San Joaquin supergiants that have given up more than 1 billion barrels of crude oil during their lifetimes, is the 47,000-acre Elk Hills field.
—Christopher Helman, Forbes, 14 Feb. 2024
The red supergiant Betelgeuse shines on Orion’s right shoulder.
—Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 1 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'supergiant.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1926, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near supergiant
Cite this Entry
“Supergiant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/supergiant. Accessed 17 Apr. 2024.
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