as in oval
a shape that resembles a flattened circle
The teacher drew an ellipse on the chalkboard that intended to illustrate the moon's orbit around the Earth.
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Recent Examples of ellipse
In our seminar, Bolin later showed a visualization of 3I/ATLAS's orbit around the galaxy — no neat ellipse, but rather a looping, spiraling path distorted by encounters with gas clouds, spiral arms and dark matter.
—
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 2 Dec. 2025
Since the moon’s orbit around the Earth is not a perfect circle but rather an ellipse or oval, the moon’s distance from Earth can vary in its orbit, but not all that much.
—Mike Lynch, Twin Cities, 5 Oct. 2025
The moon’s orbital path around Earth is a slight ellipse, so there’s a near-point (perigee) and a far-point (apogee) every month.
—Jamie Carter, Forbes, 13 Oct. 2024
The above pic shows how the landing target for the rover, also known as Curiosity, has been changed: from an ellipse 20 kilometers by 25 kilometers, the new target is just 7 kilometers by 20 kilometers.
—IEEE Spectrum, 12 June 2012
See All Example Sentences for ellipse
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Space.com, 2 Dec. 2025
Since the moon’s orbit around the Earth is not a perfect circle but rather an ellipse or oval, the moon’s distance from Earth can vary in its orbit, but not all that much.
—Mike Lynch, Twin Cities, 5 Oct. 2025
The moon’s orbital path around Earth is a slight ellipse, so there’s a near-point (perigee) and a far-point (apogee) every month.
—Jamie Carter, Forbes, 13 Oct. 2024
The above pic shows how the landing target for the rover, also known as Curiosity, has been changed: from an ellipse 20 kilometers by 25 kilometers, the new target is just 7 kilometers by 20 kilometers.
—IEEE Spectrum, 12 June 2012
See All Example Sentences for ellipse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ellipse
Noun
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An iconic style from the brand hailing from the fall 2016 runway, the Kiki has amassed a legion of celebrity fans who have embraced the silhouette’s defining platform, towering block heel and unique buckle design leaving oval cut outs.—
Jaden Thompson,
Footwear News,
3 June 2026
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The grand walled Greco-Roman settlement is entered through 2nd-century Hadrian’s Arch and includes the Temple of Zeus, the Hippodrome, the Temple of Artemis and the Forum’s oval colonnade of 56 Corinthian columns.—
Hanna Wickes,
Charlotte Observer,
3 June 2026
Noun
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New World screwworm flies, the size of a housefly, lay eggs inside warm-blooded animals' open wounds or body openings, such as eyes, nose or mouth.—
Eduardo Cuevas,
USA Today,
6 June 2026
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Even a nutritionally dense food like eggs or salmon (which are excellent individual choices in a varied diet) cannot supply the range of fibers, polyphenols and prebiotic compounds that sustain a diverse microbiome.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
6 June 2026
Noun
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To my right was a picture of a pearlescent orb floating on a blank field.—
Jonathan Odden,
Artforum,
2 June 2026
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Still, convincing the public to trust a futuristic silver orb with something as sensitive as biometric identity remains a challenge.—
Sam Birchall,
Fortune,
1 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ellipse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ellipse. Accessed 8 Jun. 2026.
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