meteoroid

[mee-tee-uh-roid] /ˈmi ti əˌrɔɪd/

noun, Astronomy

any of the small bodies, often remnants of comets, traveling through space: when such a body enters the earth's atmosphere it is heated to luminosity and becomes a meteor.

Origin

1860-65; meteor + -oid

Can be confused

meteor, meteoric, meteorite, meteoroid.

British Dictionary definitions for meteoroid

meteoroid

/ˈmiːtɪəˌrɔɪd/

noun

any of the small celestial bodies that are thought to orbit the sun, possibly as the remains of comets. When they enter the earth's atmosphere, they become visible as meteors

Derived Forms

meteoroidal, adjective

Word Origin and History for meteoroid

"rock floating in space, which becomes a meteor when it enters Earth's atmosphere," formed in English, 1865, from meteor + -oid.

meteoroid in Science

meteoroid

(mē'tē-ə-roid')
A small, rocky or metallic body revolving in interplanetary space around the Sun. A meteoroid is significantly smaller than an asteroid, ranging from small grains or particles to the size of large boulders. The clustered meteoroids associated with regular annual meteor showers are believed to be very small particles of cometary debris. Meteoroids that survive their passage through the Earth's atmosphere and land as meteorites are somewhat larger, solitary bodies and are encountered in no predictable pattern. See Note at meteor.