nova English · revision 15068

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=1877|origins=la novus}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: UK /ˈnəʊ.və/, US /ˈnoʊ.və/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[bor|la-new|nova]], the feminine of [[la|novus|t=new]] (see [[new]]), used with [[m|la|stēlla|t=star]], a feminine noun, for a new star not known before.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024)^(NODE 1998)^(Collins 2023) Tycho Brahe's account of the new star in Cassiopeia of 1572 was titled De nova stella.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A new star or nebula not previously recorded: 1877.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The current meaning, a star that suddenly brightens and then slowly fades, is first recorded in 1927.^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) Novae were not told apart from supernovae until the 1930s, and Tycho's star was in fact a supernova.^(Etymonline) The classical plural is novae.^(Etymonline)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1572 – De nova stella (Tycho Brahe).^(Etymonline)

+ * 1877 – a new star.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1927 – a star that flares and fades.^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024)

+ * 1930s – nova and supernova told apart.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # ''(astronomy)'' A star that suddenly becomes much brighter and then fades over weeks or years; it is now understood as a close binary system with a [[white dwarf]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[novalike]]

+ * [[supernova]]

+ * [[supernova remnant]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[novel]]

+ * [[new]]

+ * [[novice]]

+

+ ==Usage notes==

+ Nova, smoked salmon (1964), is short for Nova Scotia salmon.^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}