com·et

(kŏm′ĭt)

A celestial body, observed only in that part of its orbit that is relatively close to the sun, having a head consisting of a solid nucleus surrounded by a nebulous coma up to 2.4 million kilometers (1.5 million miles) in diameter and an elongated curved vapor tail arising from the coma when sufficiently close to the sun. Comets are thought to consist chiefly of ammonia, methane, carbon dioxide, and water.

[Middle English comete, from Old English comēta, from Late Latin, from Latin comētēs, from Greek komētēs, long-haired (star), comet, from komē, hair.]

com′et·ar′y (-ĭ-tĕr′ē), co·met′ic (kə-mĕt′ĭk) adj.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

comet

(ˈkɒmɪt)

(Celestial Objects) a celestial body that travels around the sun, usually in a highly elliptical orbit: thought to consist of a solid frozen nucleus part of which vaporizes on approaching the sun to form a gaseous luminous coma and a long luminous tail

[C13: from Old French comète, from Latin comēta, from Greek komētēs long-haired, from komē hair]

ˈcometary, cometic adj

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

com•et

(ˈkɒm ɪt)

n.

a celestial body (with) a central solid mass and a tail of dust and gas and that orbits the sun along a highly eccentric course.

[1150–1200; Middle English comete < Anglo-French, Old French < Latin comētēs,comēta < Greek komḗtēs wearing long hair]

com′et•ar`y (-ɪˌtɛr i) adj.

com·et

(kŏm′ĭt)

A celestial object that orbits the sun along an elongated path. When close to the sun, a comet has a head made up of a gaseous coma surrounding a solid nucleus of ice, frozen gases, and dust. A long, bright stream of gas and dust forms the tail of a comet. See Note at solar system.

The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

comet

- Has a tail, and gets its name from Greek kometes, "long-haired star."

comet

A dust, gas, and ice body that orbits the Sun and develops a long, bright tail on nearing the Sun.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

comet - (astronomy) a relatively small extraterrestrial body consisting of a frozen mass that travels around the sun in a highly elliptical orbit

astronomy, uranology - the branch of physics that studies celestial bodies and the universe as a whole

coma - (astronomy) the luminous cloud of particles surrounding the frozen nucleus of a comet; forms as the comet approaches the sun and is warmed

estraterrestrial body, extraterrestrial object - a natural object existing outside the earth and outside the earth's atmosphere

nucleus - (astronomy) the center of the head of a comet; consists of small solid particles of ice and frozen gas that vaporizes on approaching the sun to form the coma and tail

comet

noun

Related words
fear cometophobia

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

Translations

نـَجْمٌ ذُو ذَنَبنَجْمٌ مُذنَّب

комета

kometa

komet

komeetta

komet

üstökös

komet

halastjarna

cometa

彗星

혜성

cometes

kometa

komēta

kométa

komet

ดาวหาง

kuyruklu yıldız

sao chổi

彗星慧星

comet

[ˈkɒmɪt] N → cometa m

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

comet

[ˈkɒmɪt] n → comète f

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

comet

n → Komet m

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

comet

[ˈkɒmɪt] n → cometa

comet

(ˈkomit) noun

a type of heavenly body which leaves a trail of light behind it as it moves.

comet

→ نـَجْمٌ ذُو ذَنَب kometa komet Komet κομήτης cometa komeetta comète komet cometa 彗星 혜성 komeet komet kometa cometa комета komet ดาวหาง kuyruklu yıldız sao chổi 彗星

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

Almost in the center of it, above the Prechistenka Boulevard, surrounded and sprinkled on all sides by stars but distinguished from them all by its nearness to the earth, its white light, and its long uplifted tail, shone the enormous and brilliant comet of 18l2- the comet which was said to portend all kinds of woes and the end of the world.

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For instance, some worthy persons maintained that the moon was an ancient comet which, in describing its elongated orbit round the sun, happened to pass near the earth, and became confined within her circle of attraction.

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Their apprehensions arise from several changes they dread in the celestial bodies: for instance, that the earth, by the continual approaches of the sun towards it, must, in course of time, be absorbed, or swallowed up; that the face of the sun, will, by degrees, be encrusted with its own effluvia, and give no more light to the world; that the earth very narrowly escaped a brush from the tail of the last comet, which would have infallibly reduced it to ashes; and that the next, which they have calculated for one-and-thirty years hence, will probably destroy us.

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Comets, out of question, have likewise power and effect, over the gross and mass of things; but they are rather gazed upon, and waited upon in their journey, than wisely observed in their effects; specially in, their respective effects; that is, what kind of comet, for magnitude, color, version of the beams, placing in the reign of heaven, or lasting, produceth what kind of effects.

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It was Kitty Comet, the prettiest of all the pussies, and Comet evidently had a mission to perform, for a pink bow adorned her neck, and a bit of paper was pinned to it bearing the words, "For Miss Rose, from Frank."

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"She'd read that interview of mine with the Comet man," Mr.

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At last a steady twilight brooded over the earth, a twilight only broken now and then when a comet glared across the darkling sky.

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No one is obliged to discover either a planet, a comet, or a satellite; and whoever makes a mistake in such a case exposes himself justly to the derision of the mass.

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It was already nearly seventeen years since he had received from the king, on November 7, 1465, the comet year,* that fine charge of the provostship of Paris, which was reputed rather a seigneury than an office.

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There was only one sofa; it was against the wall; there was only one chair where a body could get at it--I had been revolving around it like a planet, and colliding with it like a comet half the night.

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Then there was a wild yelp of agony and the poodle went sailing up the aisle; the yelps continued, and so did the dog; he crossed the house in front of the altar; he flew down the other aisle; he crossed before the doors; he clamored up the home-stretch; his anguish grew with his progress, till presently he was but a woolly comet moving in its orbit with the gleam and the speed of light.

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I just seem to get hold of a sense that we're all the same stuff after all--you, me, Killeny Boy, mountains, sand, salt water, worms, mosquitoes, suns, an' shootin' stars an' blazin comets .

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