Milky Way

noun

1
: a broad luminous irregular band of light that stretches completely around the celestial sphere and is caused by the light of myriads of faint stars
2

Examples of Milky Way in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
For space enthusiasts:James Webb Space Telescope reveals Milky Way stars being born Where is the Atlas comet 2024? Tiffany Acosta, The Arizona Republic, 31 Oct. 2024 And, under that definition, Classic Milky Way bars (which contain flour) are tax-exempt, while Milky Way Midnight bars (which do not contain flour) would be taxed. Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024 Early galaxies tend to join together and develop smoother shapes incredibly slowly, with our Milky Way taking billions of years to develop tidy structures, the researchers said. Jack Guy, CNN, 16 Oct. 2024 The radio telescope array in Australia being used is capable of looking for signs of life in star systems both in our Milky Way galaxy and in 2,800 galaxies beyond. Jamie Carter, Forbes, 21 Sep. 2024 Sky Village at Canyon of the Ancients Guest Ranch Cortez, Colorado Hidden among the mesas and grassy valleys of the arid Colorado Plateau lies one of my favorite Milky Way–watching lookouts on the continent: Canyon of the Ancients Guest Ranch. Stephanie Vermillion, Outside Online, 1 Aug. 2024 Galactic Center Our own Milky Way is a dazzling spectacle to behold from a dark-sky site on Earth. Carlyn Kranking, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 July 2024 Imagine squeezing a Milky Way’s worth of stars into a volume with a radius 100 times smaller than our familiar home spiral galaxy. Fabio Pacucci, Scientific American, 27 June 2024 Astronomer Roberta Paladini of the California Institute of Technology says studying Milky Way dust can illuminate the elaborate interplay between gravity and magnetism, helping scientists investigate when and why dust clouds collapse to form stars. Riis Williams, Scientific American, 25 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of Milky Way was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near Milky Way

Cite this Entry

“Milky Way.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Milky%20Way. Accessed 18 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

Milky Way

noun
1
: a broad band of light that stretches across the sky and is caused by the light of a very great number of faint stars
2
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!