asterism
/ˈæs.təˌrɪz.əm/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 1.51 in modern English
10
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
An unofficial constellation (small group of stars that forms a visible pattern).
Example Sentences
- "The Big Dipper, Summer Triangle, and Orion's Belt are asterisms."
- "Of the constellations, or asterisms. [...] It therefore became necessary to adopt a more general method of distinguishing them. This was accomplished by portioning out the heavens into imaginary figures, of men, birds, fishes, &c. called Constellations or Asterisms."
- "Like Pisces and Capricorn, Aquarius is located in that part of the sky known as "Astral Sea," a region inhabited by water asterisms such as Eridanus, Cetus (the Whale), and the Dolphin."
Etymology
From Ancient Greek ἀστερισμός (asterismós, “a group of stars”), from ἀστήρ (astḗr, “star”). Analyzable as aster- + -ism.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈæs.təˌrɪz.əm/
- British English: /ˈas.təˌɹɪz.əm/