white dwarf

noun

plural white dwarfs
: a small hot whitish star of low intrinsic brightness usually with a mass approximately equal to that of the sun but with a density many times larger

Examples of white dwarf in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Indeed, most white dwarfs are seen to have extremely pure atmospheres of just those two lighter elements. Phil Plait, Scientific American, 28 Mar. 2025 Sporadic radio pulses from a white dwarf binary at the orbital period Max Planck Institute. Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 12 Mar. 2025 This leaves behind a white dwarf as a gradually-cooling stellar ember. Robert Lea, Space.com, 25 Apr. 2025 The white dwarfs are currently orbiting around each other, with each orbit lasting over 14 hours. Margherita Bassi, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for white dwarf

Word History

First Known Use

1922, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of white dwarf was in 1922

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Cite this Entry

“White dwarf.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/white%20dwarf. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.

Kids Definition

white dwarf

noun
: a small whitish star of low brightness that has a mass approximately equal to that of the sun but that is many times more dense

More from Merriam-Webster on white dwarf

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