noun
Freq #18683
Meanings
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1
noun
an extremely energetic stellar explosion that makes a star suddenly become vastly more luminous
The supernova briefly outshone the other stars in its host galaxy.
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2
noun
a person or thing of exceptional brilliance, prominence, or explosive success
The young striker became the league's newest supernova.
Thesaurus
Etymology
Formed from super- ("above; greater") + nova. Walter Baade and Fritz Zwicky introduced the astronomical term in the 1930s for stellar explosions far more luminous than ordinary novae.