Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

planet

/ˈplænət/

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.68 in modern English

Syllables
plan-et
IPA
/ˈplænət/
8
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Each of the seven major bodies which move relative to the fixed stars in the night sky—the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.

noun

Any body that orbits the Sun, including the asteroids (as minor planets) and sometimes the moons of those bodies (as satellite planets)

noun

A body which is massive enough to be in hydrostatic equilibrium (generally resulting in being an ellipsoid) but not enough to attain nuclear fusion and, in IAU usage, which directly orbits a star (or multiple star) and dominates the region of its orbit; specifically, in the case of the Solar system, the eight major bodies of Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.

noun

construed with the or this: The Earth.

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English planete, from Old French planete, from Latin planeta, planetes, from Ancient Greek πλανήτης (planḗtēs, “wanderer”) (itself an ellipsis of ἀστέρες πλανῆται (astéres planêtai, “wandering stars”)), from Ancient Greek πλανάω (planáō, “wander about, stray”), of unknown origin. Cognate with Latin pālor (“wander about, stray”), Old Norse flana (“to rush about”), and Norwegian flanta (“to wander about”). More at flaunt. So called because they have apparent motion, unlike the "fixed" stars. Originally including also the moon and sun but not the Earth; modern scientific sense of "world that orbits a star" is from 1630s in English. The Greek word is an enlarged form of πλάνης (plánēs, “who wanders around, wanderer”), also "wandering star, planet", in medicine "unstable temperature." Displaced native Old English tungol.

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: planete, planeta, πλανήτης, πλανάω

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈplænət/
  • British English: /ˈplænɪt/

Inflected Forms

planets (plural)

Derived Forms

antiplanet aquaplanet blanet deplanetize homeplanet interplanetary multiplanet nonplanet planetal planetality planetar planetarium

Phrases

forbidden planet gas giant planet on what planet planet gear planet-hunting planet placement planet-sized planet-stricken

Frequently Paired Words

planetary body planetary-mass object planetary object planet-ruler planet-struck moon orbit brown dwarf

Synonyms

wandering star wanderstar world planet major planet satellite

Antonyms

dwarf planet

Rhymes With

janet granite pomegranate gannet

Questions

How do you pronounce planet?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈplænət/.
What does planet mean?
Each of the seven major bodies which move relative to the fixed stars in the night sky—the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.
Where does planet come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce planet

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “planet”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈplænət/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “planet”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “planet” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.