meteorite

[ mee-tee-uh-rahyt ]

noun

1. a mass of stone or metal that has reached the earth from outer space; a fallen meteoroid.
2. a meteoroid.

meteorite

/ ˌmiːtɪəˈrɪtɪk; ˈmiːtɪəˌraɪt /

noun

1. a rocklike object consisting of the remains of a meteoroid that has fallen on earth. It may be stony (chondrite), iron, or stony iron (pallasite) See chondrite

meteorite

/ mē′tē-ə-rīt′ /

1. A meteor that reaches the Earth's surface because it has not been burned up by friction with the atmosphere. Meteorites are believed to be fragments of comets and asteroids.
2. ◆ Meteorites that consist mostly of silicates are called stony meteorites and are classified as either chondrites or achondrites.
3. ◆ Meteorites that consist mostly of iron are called iron meteorites.
4. ◆ Meteorites that consist of a mixture of silicates and iron are called stony-iron meteorites.

Derived Forms

• meteoritic, adjective

Other Words From

• me·te·or·it·ic [mee-tee-, uh, -, rit, -ik], mete·or·iti·cal me·te·or·it·al [mee-tee-, uh, -, rahyt, -l], adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of meteorite¹

First recorded in 1815–25; meteor + -ite ¹

Example Sentences

So meteorites provide us with a lot of information about a small number of objects, and micrometeorites provide a tiny amount of information on a lot of objects.

From Quanta Magazine

Burning bits of ground-up meteorites may tell scientists what exoplanets’ early atmospheres are made of.

From Science News

These meteorites are made out of dust that’s just the right size to drift really fast within the disk.

From Nautilus

Then a series of Hubble Space Telescope observations between 2006 and 2013 found that they were more like incoming meteorites.

From Quanta Magazine

Ryugu should also help us understand what kinds of elements and compounds might have been delivered to the early Earth by meteorite impacts.

From MIT Technology Review

For example, a common type of meteorite has similar mineral content to Earth, but a lot less deuterium.

From The Daily Beast

But how many of them remember the CNN host who asked whether the Russian meteorite had been caused by global warming?

From The Daily Beast

You haven't forgotten how the natives of Giant Land feared the meteorite and insisted that we take it away.

From Project Gutenberg

His people think we are great magicians or else witch doctors, and Amo wrote begging us to take the meteorite from his land.

From Project Gutenberg

All of them appeared exhausted, but Tom's eyes expressed the greatest satisfaction when he saw the meteorite safely aboard.

From Project Gutenberg

Thus it was that the great meteorite reached the top long before Tom and the two natives did.

From Project Gutenberg

Ned Newton wired that the meteorite had been safely placed on a fast freight train.

From Project Gutenberg