galactic

[ guh-lak-tik ]

adjective

1. Astronomy.
   1. of or relating to a galaxy.
   2. of or relating to the Milky Way.
2. immense; huge; vast:

   a problem of galactic proportions.

3. Physiology. pertaining to or stimulating the secretion of milk.

galactic

/ ɡəˈlæktɪk /

adjective

1. astronomy of or relating to a galaxy, esp the Galaxy

   the galactic plane

2. med of or relating to milk

Other Words From

• nonga·lactic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of galactic¹

First recorded in 1830–40, galactic is from the Greek word galaktikós milky. See galact-, -ic

Word History and Origins

Origin of galactic¹

C19: from Greek galaktikos; see galaxy

Example Sentences

By sorting truth from deceit, holding the adage that humanity’s greatest weapon is the lie, the Sisterhood wields influence throughout the galactic Imperium by inserting their representatives at the side of every ruler.

From Salon

The first colonists would encounter a barren landscape without water or breathable atmosphere, bathed in deadly solar and galactic radiation from which Earthbound humans are protected by our planet’s atmosphere and magnetic field.

From Los Angeles Times

Now that the spacecraft is outside the Sun’s protective bubble, its electronics are also vulnerable to strikes from galactic cosmic rays, charged particles accelerated to ultrahigh energies by supernovae and other cosmic engines.

From Science Magazine

For Kimberly Arcand, a visualization scientist with NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, visual symmetry reveals how basic physics and chemistry thread through everything in the universe, from the tiniest organisms to the most massive galactic clusters.

From New York Times

MIT researchers, including several undergraduate students, have discovered three of the oldest stars in the universe, and they happen to live in our own galactic neighborhood.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• astronomical
• cosmic