Pleiades

plural noun

Ple·​ia·​des ˈplē-ə-ˌdēz 

ˈplā-,

chiefly British

ˈplī- 

1

: the seven daughters of Atlas turned into a group of stars in Greek mythology

2

: a conspicuous cluster of stars in the constellation Taurus that includes six stars in the form of a very small dipper

Examples of Pleiades in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

It will be positioned very close to the Pleiades, also known as M45, one of the most beautiful sights in the night sky. —Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025

The moon will sweep close to the Pleiades open star cluster in the early morning hours of Aug. 16-17, with the ice giant Uranus lurking unseen nearby. —Anthony Wood, Space.com, 14 Aug. 2025

To make things even better, the researchers are trying to combine the GPS tracking data with high-resolution images from Airbus' Pleiades Neo satellites to understand why and when the elephants visit villages and farms. —Tereza Pultarova, Space.com, 1 Aug. 2025

Below are two timetables giving local circumstances for the disappearance and reappearance of the four brightest members of the Pleiades that will be occulted. —Joe Rao, Space.com, 19 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin, from Greek

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for Pleiades

• abcs
• absentees
• addressees
• adoptees
• allottees
• amputees
• antifreeze
• appellees
• appointees
• arrestees
• artistes
• assamese

Kids Definition

Pleiades

plural noun

Ple·​ia·​des ˈplē-ə-ˌdēz 

: a loose cluster of stars in Taurus that is easily seen by a person with average sight