solar system

noun

: the sun together with the group of celestial bodies that are held by its attraction and revolve around it

also : a similar system centered on another star

Examples of solar system in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For possibly billions of years, the comet has drifted on a journey from the general direction of the constellation Sagittarius in the center of the Milky Way that recently brought it into our solar system. —Eric Lagatta, AZCentral.com, 19 Dec. 2025

Its full-sky view will illuminate the asteroids and comets littering our own solar system, for example. —Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 19 Dec. 2025

Not the first interstellar comet As its name suggests, comet 3I/ATLAS is not the first interstellar object known to come from beyond our solar system. —Anthony Wood, Space.com, 19 Dec. 2025

Comets that originate in our solar system emit X-rays, but astronomers have long wondered whether interstellar comets behave the same. —Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 18 Dec. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1704, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for solar system

• cryptosystem
• ecosystem
• intersystem
• multisystem
• photosystem
• subsystem

Kids Definition

solar system

noun

: a star with the group of heavenly bodies that revolve around it

especially : the sun with the planets, moons, asteroids, and comets that orbit it