Meridian

Quick meaning: Meridian is a noun meaning The place on the celestial meridian where it is crossed by the sun or a star at its highest point.

Meaning

The place on the celestial meridian where it is crossed by the sun or a star at its highest point.

More Meanings

1. A ring or half-ring with markings in which an artificial globe is installed and may spin.
2. A line passing through the poles of any sphere; a notional line on the surface of a curved or round body (in particular, an eyeball).
3. (US, printing, dated) The size of type between double great primer and canon, standardized as 44-point.
4. The south.
5. Midday, noon.
6. In full celestial meridian: a great circle passing through the poles of the celestial sphere and the zenith for a particular point on the Earth's surface.
7. In full terrestrial meridian: a great circle on the Earth's surface, passing through the geographic poles (the terrestrial North Pole and South Pole); also, half of such a circle extending from pole to pole, all points of which have the same longitude.

Example Sentences

Thought he, it’s a wicked world in all meridians; I’ll die a pagan.

Call to mind thy dream, / An earthly globe, / On whoſe meridian was engraven, / Theſe ſeas are tears, and heav'n the haven.

He acts his vvhole life on this earthly ſtage, / In Child-hood, Youth, Man-hood, Decripit age. / The very day that doth afford him light, / Is Morning, the Meridian, Evening, Night.

In this Place of Venus the Hour and Amplitude of the Sun's Riſing, for one Half of the Year, are the ſame with thoſe of his Setting in the other Half; which will alſo happen in all Places under the firſt Meridian, where he riſes and ſets: […]

Word Forms

• meridians
• meridianing
• meridianed

Synonyms for meridian

Depending on context, synonyms include noontide, meridiem, midday, nones, noon, noonday.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include longitude, noon, meridional, distant, pinnacle, summit.

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