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Added 10 October 2026

sublunary

/sʌbˈluːnəɹi/ adjective

In Latin: sublūnāris Wiktionary

adjective Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about sublunary at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Situated beneath the moon; specifically, between the moon and the earth.
:
In or of this world (as opposed to heaven, etc.); earthly, terrestrial.
In or of this world (as opposed to heaven, etc.); earthly, terrestrial.

noun

A person or thing which is of the (material) world.
A less important person; an inferior, a subordinate.

Origin

PIE word *upó The adjective is a learned borrowing from Late Latin sublūnāris (“sublunar, sublunary”) + English -ary (suffix meaning of or pertaining to forming adjectives). Sublūnāris is derived from Latin sub- (prefix meaning ‘below, beneath, under’) + lūnāris (“of or pertaining to the moon, lunar”) (from lūna (“moon”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *lewk- (“bright; to see; to shine”)) + -āris (suffix forming adjectives denoting a pertaining to or relationship)). By surface analysis, sub- + lunary. The noun is derived from the adjective.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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