extraterrestrial

1 of 2

adjective

ex·​tra·​ter·​res·​tri·​al ˌek-strə-tə-ˈre-strē-əl How to pronounce extraterrestrial (audio)
-ˈres-chəl,
-ˈresh-chəl
: originating, existing, or occurring outside the earth or its atmosphere
extraterrestrial life

extraterrestrial

2 of 2

noun

: a being from another world : an extraterrestrial being

Examples of extraterrestrial in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
The Alien saga returns to its extraterrestrial roots with the franchise’s upcoming Alien: Romulus, a standalone installment hitting movie theaters this August. Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 20 Mar. 2024 Production was building what became the backdrop for the show’s pioneering virtual reality game, and Hong was face-to-face with some 300 giant LED screens that were all individually designed to portray the sky of an extraterrestrial planet. Seija Rankin, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Mar. 2024 While some observers of the monolith chalked it up as an elaborate prank, others found the extraterrestrial angle plausible. Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 18 Mar. 2024 Around Huang’s keynote address, Nvidia executives and researchers will host panels on topics including extraterrestrial intelligence, diffusion models, autonomous vehicles, AI ethics, and cybersecurity. 💊 Robo-meds. Britney Nguyen, Quartz, 18 Mar. 2024 Instead, the rovers are acting as extraterrestrial detectives, hunting for clues that life may have existed eons ago. Amy J. Williams, Discover Magazine, 16 Mar. 2024 The trio eventually meet a group of alien-human hybrids (Katherine Heigl, Jason Behr and Brendon Fehr) and help keep their extraterrestrial friends hidden from the government. Esther Kang, Peoplemag, 15 Mar. 2024 Though the upcoming mission isn’t going to send a message to aliens, its plate provides a clue to how any extraterrestrial civilization can best get in contact with humans. Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Mar. 2024 The enduring mystery of the Phoenix Lights has fueled speculation about the possibility of extraterrestrial visitors or clandestine government activities. The Arizona Republic, 13 Mar. 2024
Noun
Hamilton portrays General Eleanor McCallister, a high-ranking military officer who has daddy issues and a long brewing interest in extraterrestrials. Lisa Respers France, CNN, 29 Feb. 2024 Whether or not extraterrestrials take notice remains to be seen. Eric Lagatta, The Courier-Journal, 23 Feb. 2024 Secret organizations communicate with extraterrestrials, but keep this fact from the public. Mark Travers, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2024 Tasked with working alongside physicist Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner) to translate what the extraterrestrials — referred to as Heptapods — are after, Louise begins to bond with and understand Earth’s visitors. Randall Colburn, EW.com, 26 Jan. 2024 With the fate of the world resting on Bumblebee's metal shoulders, the transformer and Charlie team up to protect Earth from the Decepticons and Agent Burns (John Cena), the head of a secret agency tasked with helping to protect the planet from hostile extraterrestrials. Randall Colburn, EW.com, 26 Jan. 2024 If extraterrestrials can be covered up, what else is being hidden? Michelle Orange, Harper's Magazine, 3 Nov. 2023 For one thing, both places were crawling with cats, turning a high-concept livestream from Marvel Entertainment into a chaotic scene of tumbling, jumping, eating, purring felines that just might have been extraterrestrials in disguise (a.k.a. Steve Appleford, Los Angeles Times, 20 Jan. 2024 Ergo pre-Columbian people must have achieved flight, millennia before Orville and Wilbur Wright, with help from extraterrestrials. Discover Magazine, 4 Dec. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'extraterrestrial.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1848, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1950, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of extraterrestrial was in 1848

Dictionary Entries Near extraterrestrial

Cite this Entry

“Extraterrestrial.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/extraterrestrial. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

extraterrestrial

adjective
ex·​tra·​ter·​res·​tri·​al
ˌek-strə-tə-ˈres-trē-əl
: coming from or existing outside the earth or its atmosphere
extraterrestrial life
extraterrestrial noun

More from Merriam-Webster on extraterrestrial

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