supermoon

noun

su·​per·​moon ˈsü-pər-ˌmün 

plural supermoons

: a full moon occurring when the moon is at or near the closest point in its orbit

A supermoon … occurs when the moon is full within 24 hours of being at its closest point to the Earth in its orbit.

—Kaleigh Rogers

Visible supermoons appear 14% bigger and 30% brighter than full moons that occur at the farthest point in the moon's orbit.

—Karen Hao

As the first and only supermoon of 2017 rose high into the sky this Sunday (Dec. 3), astrophotographers seized the opportunity to shoot the moon in all its bigger-than-usual glory.

—Hanneke Weitering

Examples of supermoon in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The moon was roughly 50,000 kilometers farther from Earth than during a typical supermoon, reducing its apparent size and brightness. —Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026

Advertisement The opposite of a micromoon is a supermoon, which occurs when a full moon reaches perigee, or its closest point to Earth on the moon’s orbit. —Connor Greene, Time, 29 May 2026

The most recent supermoon, by comparison, was just 225,130 miles away. —CBS News, 28 May 2026

The most recent supermoon, for instance, was just 225,130 miles away. —Marcia Dunn, Chicago Tribune, 28 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1979, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for supermoon

• afternoon
• forenoon
• honeymoon
• importune
• laocoon
• opportune
• pantaloon
• picayune
• tablespoon
• attune
• baboon
• balloon