as in worlds
a huge physical or conceptual distance
my sister and I are close in age, but personality-wise, there are light-years between us
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Recent Examples of light-years
The same simulation can capture the turbulent physics of gas forming stars inside galaxies while also mapping the distribution of galaxy clusters across billions of light-years.
—
Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 6 May 2026
These shards travel billions of light-years across the universe and slam into Earth’s atmosphere.
—Quanta Magazine, 6 May 2026
From within our own galaxy to behemoths billions of light-years away, supermassive black holes create jets like nothing else in the cosmos.
—Big Think, 4 May 2026
Astronomers can use telescopes to find specific molecules in the atmospheres of neighboring planets, in nebulae – clouds of interstellar dust and gas – hundreds or thousands of light-years away, or in galaxies beyond the far reaches of the Milky Way.
—Olivia Harper Wilkins, The Conversation, 27 Apr. 2026
Space is the massive, ever-expanding realm beyond Earth’s atmosphere, spanning more than 93 billion light-years in the observable universe.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 27 Apr. 2026
The Trifid Nebula is a bright, colorful cloud of gas and dust about 5,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Sagittarius, according to NASA.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 27 Apr. 2026
Such visions pull our minds into journeys of light-years and thoughts far beyond or grounded world.
—Ernie Cowan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Apr. 2026
Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 6 May 2026
These shards travel billions of light-years across the universe and slam into Earth’s atmosphere.
—Quanta Magazine, 6 May 2026
From within our own galaxy to behemoths billions of light-years away, supermassive black holes create jets like nothing else in the cosmos.
—Big Think, 4 May 2026
Astronomers can use telescopes to find specific molecules in the atmospheres of neighboring planets, in nebulae – clouds of interstellar dust and gas – hundreds or thousands of light-years away, or in galaxies beyond the far reaches of the Milky Way.
—Olivia Harper Wilkins, The Conversation, 27 Apr. 2026
Space is the massive, ever-expanding realm beyond Earth’s atmosphere, spanning more than 93 billion light-years in the observable universe.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 27 Apr. 2026
The Trifid Nebula is a bright, colorful cloud of gas and dust about 5,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Sagittarius, according to NASA.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 27 Apr. 2026
Such visions pull our minds into journeys of light-years and thoughts far beyond or grounded world.
—Ernie Cowan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for light-years
Noun
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Although the population size seems to be stable, threats from climate change — rising ocean levels surrounding small islands — and from the ongoing loss of their habitat to human development will take a toll on their already fragile island worlds over the coming decades.—
Craig Stanford,
Big Think,
7 May 2026
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The tinted eye cream makes the clever case for best of both worlds.—
Audrey Noble,
Vogue,
7 May 2026
Noun
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To get to the bottom of things, though, the team behind the new research examined the host galaxies and environments of LFBOTs to try to pin down what the progenitors of these explosive events could really be.—
Robert Lea,
Space.com,
8 May 2026
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Yet the outcome of the big bang was somehow a tiny sliver more matter than antimatter—all the galaxies, dust and living things in the universe belong to this minuscule excess.—
Joseph Howlett,
Scientific American,
8 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Light-years.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/light-years. Accessed 10 May. 2026.
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