ENGLISH
REFERENCE

meteor

n. · v.
US //ˈmitiɝ// UK //mˈiːtɪɐ// me·te·or
  1. 1 shooting star (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Science

    a bright streak of light in the night sky caused by a piece of space rock burning up in the atmosphere.

    the visible streak of light produced by a meteoroid heating up as it enters a planetary atmosphere.

    Example

    We sat on the grass for hours watching the meteor shower.

    Example

    The friction of the atmosphere causes the meteor to vaporise, creating a brilliant trail that is visible from the ground for several seconds.
    • shooting star
    • falling star
    Pitfall
    The meteor hit the ground and made a hole.
    The meteorite hit the ground and made a hole.

    Use 'meteor' for the light in the sky and 'meteorite' for the rock that actually lands on the ground.

  2. 2 brief success (n.)
    C1 Advanced Literary

    a person or thing that becomes very famous or successful very quickly but only for a short time.

    a person or entity that achieves sudden, brilliant, but transient success or fame.

    Example

    The young singer was a meteor who disappeared from the charts after one hit.

    Example

    His political career was something of a meteor; he rose to the cabinet within a year only to resign in scandal months later.
    • flash in the pan
  3. 3 to move fast (v.)
    C2 Proficiency Literary

    to move at a very high speed.

    to move with great speed or momentum, often in a sudden or uncontrolled manner.

    Example

    The race car meteored past the finish line.

    Example

    The experimental aircraft meteored across the desert sky, leaving a thin white trail against the deep blue of the afternoon.

    Usage

    The verb is intransitive and does not take a direct object.
Origin

From Middle French météore, from Old French, from Latin meteorum, from Ancient Greek μετέωρον (metéōron), from μετέωρος (metéōros, “raised from the ground, hanging, lofty”), from μετά (metá, “in the midst of, among, between”) (English meta) + ἀείρω (aeírō, “to lift, to heave, to raise up”). The original sense of “atmospheric phenomenon” gave rise to meteorology, but the meaning of "meteor" is now restricted to extraterrestrial objects burning up as they enter the atmosphere.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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Last updated June 20, 2026