as in circles
to travel completely around
the moon orbits the Earth
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Recent Examples of orbits
IEEE Spectrum, 21 Jan. 2026
The plan represents a departure for Europe’s top satellite makers, which have traditionally focused on large, complex spacecraft in high orbits, but the industry has been disrupted by Starlink’s small, relatively cheap, low-orbit machines.
—Ben Smith, semafor.com, 24 Oct. 2025
If a planet orbits close to its star in an elliptical orbit, then its interior will stretch and squeeze as the gravitational strength of the star changes.
—Paul Sutter, Space.com, 14 Oct. 2025
Phil Plait, Scientific American, 27 Feb. 2026
Psyche is a nickel-iron core asteroid that orbits the sun beyond Mars anywhere from 235 million to 309 million miles away.
—Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 24 Feb. 2026
Starlink orbits the Earth at about 550 kilometers, and covers the entire globe, cutting the latency time (the data time between the user and satellite) down to around 25 milliseconds, according to its website.
—Dallas Morning News, Boston Herald, 21 Feb. 2026
An asteroid is a small, rocky object that orbits the sun, according to NASA.
—Marley Malenfant, Austin American Statesman, 19 Feb. 2026
However, instead of being a dead end for the Chrysalis hypothesis, the simulations opened another door, and the key was another moon of Saturn, Hyperion, which orbits just beyond Titan.
—Keith Cooper, Space.com, 17 Feb. 2026
Because the station orbits Earth once every 90 minutes, the crew on board sees 16 sunrises and sunsets every day.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 27 Jan. 2026
The same can be said of the moon, which instead orbits Earth.
—Eric Lagatta, AZCentral.com, 23 Jan. 2026
Bichette could consult Toronto Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews for advice on how to handle the pressure of playing in a city that seemingly orbits around its team, but even that’s not the same.
—Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 21 Jan. 2026
Noun
Canadian and American researchers simulated satellite orbits in low Earth orbit and generated a metric, the CRASH Clock, that measures the number of days before collisions start happening if collision-avoidance maneuvers stop.
—IEEE Spectrum, 21 Jan. 2026
The plan represents a departure for Europe’s top satellite makers, which have traditionally focused on large, complex spacecraft in high orbits, but the industry has been disrupted by Starlink’s small, relatively cheap, low-orbit machines.
—Ben Smith, semafor.com, 24 Oct. 2025
If a planet orbits close to its star in an elliptical orbit, then its interior will stretch and squeeze as the gravitational strength of the star changes.
—Paul Sutter, Space.com, 14 Oct. 2025
Verb
As the exomoon orbits its host, its gravity swings the planet around their common center of gravity, called the barycenter.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 27 Feb. 2026
Psyche is a nickel-iron core asteroid that orbits the sun beyond Mars anywhere from 235 million to 309 million miles away.
—Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 24 Feb. 2026
Starlink orbits the Earth at about 550 kilometers, and covers the entire globe, cutting the latency time (the data time between the user and satellite) down to around 25 milliseconds, according to its website.
—Dallas Morning News, Boston Herald, 21 Feb. 2026
An asteroid is a small, rocky object that orbits the sun, according to NASA.
—Marley Malenfant, Austin American Statesman, 19 Feb. 2026
However, instead of being a dead end for the Chrysalis hypothesis, the simulations opened another door, and the key was another moon of Saturn, Hyperion, which orbits just beyond Titan.
—Keith Cooper, Space.com, 17 Feb. 2026
Because the station orbits Earth once every 90 minutes, the crew on board sees 16 sunrises and sunsets every day.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 27 Jan. 2026
The same can be said of the moon, which instead orbits Earth.
—Eric Lagatta, AZCentral.com, 23 Jan. 2026
Bichette could consult Toronto Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews for advice on how to handle the pressure of playing in a city that seemingly orbits around its team, but even that’s not the same.
—Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 21 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for orbits
Noun
-
Unlike some of the other pouches, this particular style is outfitted with two interior zip pockets, two slip pockets, and eight elastic makeup brush loops.—
Lydia Mansel,
Travel + Leisure,
23 Feb. 2026
-
Also called exercise loops, resistance bands are portable, inexpensive, and are available with varying amounts of tension, or resistance.—
Jenessa Connor,
Health,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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As the camera circles the car, two other portions of Kennedy’s speech play in the background.—
Madeline Coleman,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
-
The polar vortex is a persistent, large-scale cyclone that circles the Arctic and contains extremely cold air.—
Brandi D. Addison,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
3 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Then, looking at the amp rating of your circuits (most laundry appliances require a 15–30 amp circuit).—
Lauren Bengtson,
Better Homes & Gardens,
5 Aug. 2025
Verb
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As Mesidor traverses the field at Bommarito Performance Systems in Aventura, there’s a part of him that wants to be alongside everyone else who does wind sprints in preparation for their 40s.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
22 Feb. 2026
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The nearly 450-foot-tall bridge, one of the vehicular bridges in the Trinity River Corridor Project, connects downtown Dallas to West Dallas and traverses the Trinity River.—
Lydia Mansel,
Travel + Leisure,
15 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Authorities carved paths through the deep snow to eventually continue the search, and California Highway Patrol officers found the ninth victim.—
Tony Briscoe,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Instead, Jones wrote an historical novel set in the 1950s and ‘60s about lifelong friends Annie and Vernice, two motherless girls born in small-town Louisiana who take different paths in life to fill the void left behind by the absence of a mother’s love.—
Suzanne Van Atten,
AJC.com,
22 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Cala Pregonda, Menorca Just an island over from the tourist-trodden Mallorca, Menorca feels a world away—a sentiment that rings even more true in the north of the island.—
Catherine Tansey,
Condé Nast Traveler,
24 Feb. 2026
-
Both funny and deeply powerful, The Big Sick shows the reality of romance with a heartfelt love story that rings true.—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
22 Feb. 2026
Noun
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In both years, though, product trajectories indicated a standout pattern.—
Noor Lobad,
Footwear News,
27 Feb. 2026
-
The two would have similar career trajectories, but Allman cut her own path.—
Nick Wooten,
Dallas Morning News,
27 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
These pathways — such as radio, television and film at Eastside High or advanced manufacturing at Akins High — offer specialized classes for students interested in pursuing a secondary certificate or degree while in high school.—
Data Reporter,
Austin American Statesman,
23 Feb. 2026
-
Tapestry signed a 10-year agreement and has made its first carbon removal purchase, which includes credits from five carbon-removal pathways that are both engineered and nature-based.—
Jennifer Bringle,
Sourcing Journal,
23 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Orbits.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/orbits. Accessed 2 Mar. 2026.
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