circumstellar

adjective

cir·​cum·​stel·​lar ˌsər-kəm-ˈste-lər How to pronounce circumstellar (audio)
: surrounding or occurring in the vicinity of a star
circumstellar dust

Examples of circumstellar in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Some of the stars display the telltale shadow of a circumstellar disk, the makings of future planetary systems. — Alan Taylor, The Atlantic, 12 July 2023 Our protoplanetary disk has long since evaporated, as has any trace of a circumstellar debris disk. — Big Think, 8 May 2026 There's an exclusion zone for planets in circumstellar orbits around binary stars in which a planet can get no closer than four times the binary period. — Keith Cooper, Space.com, 3 June 2026 This rotation of the cloud material leads to the formation of a circumstellar disk of matter surrounding the nascent star, which then becomes a crucible for planet formation. — Katelyn Allers, Scientific American, 1 Aug. 2021 See All Example Sentences for circumstellar

Word History

First Known Use

1951, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of circumstellar was in 1951

Rhymes for circumstellar

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Browse Nearby Words

circumstantiate
circumstellar
circumstellar disk
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Cite this Entry

“Circumstellar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/circumstellar. Accessed 10 Jul. 2026.

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