astronaut
|as-tra-naut|
🇺🇸
/ˈæs.trə.nɔt/
🇬🇧
/ˈæs.trə.nɔːt/
star sailor
Etymology
'astronaut' originates from Greek, specifically the words 'astron' and 'nautes', where 'astron' meant 'star' and 'nautes' meant 'sailor'.
'astronaut' was formed in modern English (and also found in early 20th-century French usage) by combining the ancient Greek roots 'astron' + 'nautes'; its formation was modeled on compounds like 'aeronaut' (from French/Latin).
Initially coined with the literal image of a 'star-sailor' (often used in science fiction), it evolved into the standard modern term for a trained space traveler.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a person trained to travel and work in a spacecraft or space station.
The astronaut conducted experiments aboard the space station.
Synonyms
Last updated: 2025/11/08 11:52