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tellurian

 - 6 dictionary results

tel⋅lu⋅ri⋅an

1  [te-loor-ee-uhn]
Use tellurian in a Sentence
–adjective
1. of or characteristic of the earth or its inhabitants; terrestrial.
–noun
2. an inhabitant of the earth.
Origin:
1840–50; < L tellūr- (s. of tellūs) earth + -ian

tel⋅lu⋅ri⋅an

2  [te-loor-ee-uhn]
–noun
tellurion.

tel⋅lu⋅ri⋅on

  [te-loor-ee-on]
–noun
an apparatus for showing the manner in which the diurnal rotation and annual revolution of the earth and the obliquity of its axis produce the alternation of day and night and the changes of the seasons.
Also, tellurian.

Origin:
1825–35; < L tellūr- (s. of tellūs) earth + Gk -ion dim. suffix
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To tellurian
tel·lu·ri·an   (tě-lŏŏr'ē-ən)   
adj.  Of, relating to, or inhabiting the earth.
n.  

  1. An inhabitant of the earth; a terrestrial.

  2. Variant of tellurion.

tel·lu·ri·on   (tě-lŏŏr'ē-ŏn')   
n.  An apparatus that shows how the movement of the earth on its axis and around the sun causes day and night and the seasons.

[New Latin : telluro- + Greek -ion, diminutive suff.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

tellurian 
"pertaining to the earth," 1846, from L. tellus (gen. telluris) "earth," from PIE base *tel- "ground, floor" (cf. Lith. telinat "spread out, flat," Skt. talam "plain, sole of the foot," O.C.S. tilo "floor," Gk. telia "dice board," O.Ir. talam "earth," O.N. þilja "plank"). The chemical telluride is attested from 1849.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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