Library / English Dictionary |
POLARIS
Pronunciation (US): | (GB): |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
The brightest star in Ursa Minor; at the end of the handle of the Little Dipper; the northern axis of the earth points toward it
Synonyms:
North Star; polar star; Polaris; pole star; polestar
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)
Instance hypernyms:
loadstar; lodestar (guiding star; a star that is used as a reference point in navigation or astronomy)
variable; variable star (a star that varies noticeably in brightness)
Holonyms ("Polaris" is a member of...):
Little Bear; Ursa Minor (a constellation outside the zodiac that rotates around the North Star)
Dipper; Little Dipper (a cluster of seven stars in Ursa Minor; at the end of the dipper's handle is Polaris)