METEOROID

meteoroid, meteor

(noun) (astronomy) any of the small solid extraterrestrial bodies that hits the earth’s atmosphere

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Noun

meteoroid (plural meteoroids)

(astronomy) A relatively small (sand- to boulder-sized) fragment of debris in a star system that produces a meteor when it hits the atmosphere

Hypernyms

• celestial object

Hyponyms

• micrometeoroid

Source: Wiktionary

Me"te*or*oid, n. Etym: [Meteor + -oid.] (Astron.)

Definition: A small body moving through space, or revolving about the sun, which on entering the earth's atmosphere would be deflagrated and appear as a meteor. These bodies [small, solid bodies] before they come into the air, I call meteoroids. H. A. Newton.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition