extraterrestrial

[ ek-struh-tuh-res-tree-uhl ]
See synonyms for extraterrestrial on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. outside, or originating outside, the limits of the earth: People on earth have long speculated about the idea of extraterrestrial life.Cataclysmic wildfires could be expected if earth were to take an extraterrestrial hit.

noun
  1. a being originating from beyond the earth; an alien from outer space: It was your typical sci-fi novel about extraterrestrials conquering the earth.

Origin of extraterrestrial

1
First recorded in 1865–70; extra- + terrestrial

Other words from extraterrestrial

  • ex·tra·ter·res·tri·al·ly, adverb

Words Nearby extraterrestrial

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use extraterrestrial in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for extraterrestrial

extraterrestrial

/ (ˌɛkstrətɪˈrɛstrɪəl) /


adjective
  1. occurring or existing beyond the earth's atmosphere

noun
  1. (in science fiction) a being from beyond the earth's atmosphere

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for extraterrestrial

extraterrestrial

[ ĕk′strə-tə-rĕstrē-əl ]


  1. Originating, located, or occurring outside the Earth or its atmosphere.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for extraterrestrial

extraterrestrial

[ (ek-struh-tuh-res-tree-uhl) ]


A descriptive term for things outside the Earth, such as possible civilizations outside the solar system, or objects, such as meteorites, that actually reach the Earth.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.