Earth

See also: earth

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Middle English erthe, from Old English eorþe, from Proto-Germanic *erþō, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁er- (earth). More at earth.

Pronunciation

  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ɜːθ/
  • (General American) IPA(key): /ɝθ/
  • Audio (UK):(file)
  • Audio (California):(file)
  • Audio:(file)
  • Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)θ

Proper noun

Earth (usually uncountable, plural Earths)

  1. The third planet of the Solar System; the world upon which humans live.
    • 2012, Ken Adams, Earth 2... It's Where You Go When You Die[1]:
      It's my theory that we'll keep being reborn on as many Earths as it takes until every person gets it exactly right from the moment they are born until the moment they die.
    • 2022 November 18, Ian Sample, “Earth weighs in at six ronnagrams as new prefixes picked for big and small”, in The Guardian[2]:
      The arrival of the new prefixes means the Earth can now be said to weigh six ronnagrams, and Jupiter about two quettagrams.
    • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:Earth.
  2. The personification of the Earth or earth, (chiefly) as a fertile woman or (religion) goddess.

Usage notes

  • Earth may be used with or without the. Contrast other planets (e.g. Mars, Jupiter) which never take an article, and certain other celestial bodies (e.g. Sun, Moon) which always do.

The capitalized form usually occurs when it is contrasted with the names of other celestial bodies or realms:

From the Earth to the Moon
What is the distance between Earth and Mars?

Synonyms

Hypernyms

Derived terms

Translations

See also

Solar System in English · Solar System (layout · text)
Star Sun
IAU planets and
notable dwarf planets
Mercury Venus Earth Mars Ceres Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune Pluto Eris
Notable
moons
Moon Phobos
Deimos
Io
Europa
Ganymede
Callisto
Mimas
Enceladus
Tethys
Dione
Rhea
Titan
Iapetus

Miranda
Ariel
Umbriel
Titania
Oberon
Triton Charon Dysnomia

Further reading

Anagrams