astronaut

[as-truh-nawt, -not] /ˈæs trəˌnɔt, -ˌnɒt/

noun

a person engaged in or trained for spaceflight.

Origin

1925-30; astro- + (aero)naut, probably via French astronaute; see astronautical

Can be confused

astronaut, cosmonaut.

Examples from the web for astronaut

Blast off with an astronaut on his journey into space.
Since the dawn of the space era, astronaut fitness has been a large component of who gets chosen to fly into space.
If the timing is right, day-trippers may also get the chance to meet an astronaut and even view a liftoff.
The astronaut said he used a push-and-glide motion similar to cross-country skiing when he was on the moon.
Not everyone gets to be an astronaut when they grow up.
The pioneering astronaut foresees hotels in orbit-and trouble down below.
Read an interview with the first astronaut-turned-artist here.
During his training as an astronaut he had made light of the physical and psychological tests that spacemen had to endure.
Its outer skin is also made of soft, smooth materials so that if an astronaut does bump into it, she will not be harmed.
Payloads that are life-critical to a lot of people who don't wear astronaut suits.

British Dictionary definitions for astronaut

astronaut

/ˈæstrəˌnɔːt/

noun

a person trained for travelling in space See also cosmonaut

Word Origin

C20: from astro- + -naut from Greek nautēs sailor, on the model of aeronaut

Word Origin and History for astronaut

coined 1929 in science fiction, popularized from 1961 by U.S. space program, from astro- + nautes "sailor" (see naval). French astronautique (adj.) had been coined 1927 by "J.H. Rosny," pen name of Belgian-born science fiction writer Joseph Henri Honoré Boex (1856-1940) on model of aéronautique, and Astronaut was used in 1880 as the name of a fictional spaceship by English writer Percy Greg (1836-1889) in "Across the Zodiac."

astronaut in Culture

astronaut definition

A crew member of a space mission launched by the United States. (See Apollo program and Mercury program.)