as in world
a huge physical or conceptual distance
my sister and I are close in age, but personality-wise, there are light-years between us
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of light-year
The sisters are waving at us from over 400 light-years away.
—
Mike Lynch, Twin Cities, 30 Mar. 2025
But there is an argument that the first evidence was actually obtained years before, in 1988, when astronomers announced the detection of a planet around the nearby star Gamma Cephei A, 45 light-years from Earth.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 28 Mar. 2025
Since this star system of a white dwarf (the dense core of a dead star) and a red supergiant (an expanding cooling star) is 3,000 light-years away, whatever is about to happen did so 3,000 years ago.
—Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 2025
The gas has been observed directly by the James Webb Space Telescope on four exoplanets, all belonging to the HR 8799 system, located 130 light-years from Earth.
—Javier Carbajal, WIRED, 25 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for light-year
Mike Lynch, Twin Cities, 30 Mar. 2025
But there is an argument that the first evidence was actually obtained years before, in 1988, when astronomers announced the detection of a planet around the nearby star Gamma Cephei A, 45 light-years from Earth.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 28 Mar. 2025
Since this star system of a white dwarf (the dense core of a dead star) and a red supergiant (an expanding cooling star) is 3,000 light-years away, whatever is about to happen did so 3,000 years ago.
—Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 2025
The gas has been observed directly by the James Webb Space Telescope on four exoplanets, all belonging to the HR 8799 system, located 130 light-years from Earth.
—Javier Carbajal, WIRED, 25 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for light-year
Cite this Entry
“Light-year.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/light-year. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share