astronomical
Americanadjective
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of, relating to, or connected with astronomy.
-
extremely large; exceedingly great; enormous.
It takes an astronomical amount of money to build a car factory.
adjective
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enormously large; immense
-
of or relating to astronomy
Other Word Forms
- astronomically adverb
- nonastronomic adjective
- nonastronomical adjective
- nonastronomically adverb
Etymology
Origin of astronomical
First recorded in 1550–60; from Latin astronomic(us) (from Greek astronomikós ) + -al 1; astronomy, -ic
Explanation
If you lie down on a big field or on a rooftop and look up, the sky is so wide and high, it is astronomical in size — bigger than huge. Everything in that sky, including the stars and planets, is also astronomical because it is part of a science called astronomy. Astra and aster are the Latin and Greek words for star, and the first four letters of astronomical, a-s-t-r, are a scramble of the word star. Astronomy includes the study of stars, but planets and other objects and happenings in space are also part of astronomical studies. Considering how large everything in space is, it makes sense that very, very large or uncountable things sometimes get the description astronomical.
Vocabulary lists containing astronomical
Eclipse Vocabulary
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From Ascension to Zenith: Astronomy and Stargazing Terms
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Elements of the Universe: Aster, Astro ("Star")
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Felix Salmon, Elizabeth Spiers, and Emily Peck discuss what this deal says about the private and public markets and try to wrap their heads around the astronomical valuations of OpenAI and SpaceX.
From Slate • Apr. 4, 2026
Researchers and a growing number of companies say that space promises to deliver astronomical benefits.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 31, 2026
The date of the astronomical equinox also tends to naturally fluctuate between 20 and 21 March.
From BBC • Mar. 29, 2026
Many of the top teams in college basketball throw up triples at astronomical rates, taking well over half their shots from behind the arc in pursuit of gamebreaking runs.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 29, 2026
That spirit of social initiative disappeared in a short time, pulled away by the fever of the magnets, the astronomical calculations, the dreams of transmutation, and the urge to discover the wonders of the world.
From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
