starship

Etymology

It is formed from English star + ship.^[2][3][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

In astronomy, the southern constellation Argo: 1606, in J. Sylvester's translation of Du Bartas; this sense is recorded until 1850 and is now obsolete.^[2]

Semantic evolution

The science-fiction sense, a large crewed spacecraft built to travel between the stars, is first recorded in 1882, in J. B. Newbrough's Oahspe;^[2] Etymonline and Merriam-Webster date it to 1934, Etymonline citing the magazine Astounding Stories.^[3][5][6] Etymonline adds that the word had earlier been used of a state of celebrity.^[3] The OED compares spaceship.^[2]

Timeline

• 1606 – the constellation Argo (obsolete after 1850).^[2]
• 1882 – a crewed spacecraft for travel between the stars.^[2] Etymonline and Merriam-Webster date this sense to 1934.^[3][5]

Meanings

Noun

1. (science fiction) A spacecraft designed to carry a crew between the stars: The colonists' starship needed a century to reach the next system.^[7][5][2][8]

Related words

• airship
• ship
• spaceship

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
5. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
8. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins