name · noun · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
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/ˈkɒmɪt/
/ˈkɑmət/
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
rhymes with -ɒmɪt
CMU ARPABET:K AA1 M AH0 T
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
name
Meaning 1
The fifth reindeer of Santa Claus.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
name
Meaning 2
A web application model in which a long-held HTTP request allows a web server to push data to a browser, without the browser explicitly requesting it.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
A small Solar System body consisting mainly of volatile ice, dust and particles of rock whose very eccentric solar orbit periodically brings it close enough to the Sun that the ice vaporises to form an atmosphere, or coma, which may be blown by the solar wind to produce a visible tail.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: astronomy, natural-sciences
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
A celestial phenomenon with the appearance of such a body.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
Any of several species of hummingbird found in the Andes.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
6
noun
Meaning 6
(astronomy) a relatively small extraterrestrial body consisting of a frozen mass that travels around the sun in a highly elliptical orbit
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: extraterrestrial object, estraterrestrial body
History
Etymology
First attested in the 1823 poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas”. From comet.
Coined by software engineer Alex Russell in March 2006. After the Comet brand of cleaning products, as a pun on Ajax, which is also both a Web programming technique and a brand of cleaning products.
From Middle English comete, partly from Old English comēta and partly from Old French comete, both from Latin comētēs, from Ancient Greek κομήτης (komḗtēs, “longhaired”), short for ἀστὴρ κομήτης ([astēr] komētēs, "longhaired [star])" and referring to the tail of a comet, from κόμη (kómē, “hair”). Compare English faxed star and Latin crīnīta stēlla (“comet”, literally “(long) haired star”).
Across languages
Translations
173 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Chinese Mandarin:
彗星
(Huìxīng)
— reindeer of Santa Claus
Finnish:
Komeetta
— reindeer of Santa Claus
French:
Comète
— reindeer of Santa Claus
Greek:
Κομήτης
(Komítis)
— reindeer of Santa Claus
Italian:
Cometa
— reindeer of Santa Claus
Japanese:
コメット
(Kometto)
— reindeer of Santa Claus
Polish:
Kometek
— reindeer of Santa Claus
Portuguese:
Cometa
— reindeer of Santa Claus
Spanish:
Cometa
— reindeer of Santa Claus
Spanish:
Veloz
— reindeer of Santa Claus
Afrikaans:
komeet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Albanian:
kometë
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Southern Altai:
куйрукту јылдыс
(kuyruktu ǰïldïs)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Arabic:
مُذَنَّب
(muḏannab)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Arabic:
مذنب
(muzanab)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Armenian:
գիսաստղ
(gisastġ)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Assamese:
ধূমকেতু
(dhumketu)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Asturian:
cometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Azerbaijani:
kometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Bashkir:
комета
(kometa)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Bashkir:
ҡойроҡло йондоҙ
(qoyroqlo yondoź)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Basque:
kometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Belarusian:
каме́та
(kamjéta)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Belarusian:
камэ́та
(kaméta)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Bengali:
ধূমকেতু
(dhumketu)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Breton:
steredenn-lostek
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Bulgarian:
коме́та
(kométa)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Burmese:
ကြယ်တံခွန်
(kraitamhkwan)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Catalan:
cometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Chechen:
комета
(kometa)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Chinese Cantonese:
彗星
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Chinese Cantonese:
掃把星 /扫把星
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Chinese:
長尾星 /长尾星
(zh-min-nan)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Chinese:
掃帚星 /扫帚星
(zh-min-nan)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Chinese:
彗星
(hūi-chhen, hūi-chhin, hūi-seng)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Chinese Mandarin:
彗星
(huìxīng)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Chinese Mandarin:
掃帚星 /扫帚星
(sàozhǒuxīng)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Chinese Mandarin:
掃把星 /扫把星
(sàobǎxīng)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Corsican:
cumeta
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Czech:
kometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Danish:
komet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Dhivehi:
ގިނިހިލަ
(ginihila)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Dutch:
komeet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Dutch:
staartster
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Esperanto:
kometo
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Estonian:
komeet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Estonian:
sabatäht
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Fijian:
kalokalo vaka-buina
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Finnish:
komeetta
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Finnish:
pyrstötähti
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
French:
comète
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
West-Frisian:
komeet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Galician:
cometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Georgian:
კომეტა
(ḳomeṭa)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
German:
Komet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Greek:
κομήτης
(komítis)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Ancient Greek:
κομήτης
(komḗtēs)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Gujarati:
ધૂમકેતુ
(dhūmketu)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Gujarati:
પૂંછડિયો તારો
(pū̃chḍiyo tāro)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Hebrew:
שָׁבִיט
(shavít)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Hebrew:
כּוֹכַב שָׁבִיט
(kokháv shavít)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Hindi:
धूमकेतु
(dhūmketu)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Hindi:
केतुग्रह
(ketugrah)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Hindi:
पुच्छल तारा
(pucchal tārā)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Hindi:
केतु
(ketu)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Hindi:
केतुतारा
(ketutārā)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Hungarian:
üstökös
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Icelandic:
halastjarna
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Ido:
kometo
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Indonesian:
komet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Interlingua:
cometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Irish:
cóiméad
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Italian:
cometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Japanese:
彗星
(suisei)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Japanese:
箒星
(hōkiboshi)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Kannada:
ಧೂಮಕೇತು
(dhūmakētu)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Kazakh:
құйрықты жұлдыз
(qūiryqty jūldyz)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Khmer:
ធូមកេតុ
(thuumĕəʼkaet)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Khmer:
ផ្កាយដុះកន្ទុយ
(phkaay doh kɑɑkɑntuy)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Korean:
혜성
(hyeseong)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Kumyk:
къуйрукълу юлдуз
(quyruqlu yulduz)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Northern Kurdish:
komet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Northern Kurdish:
dûvstêr
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Kyrgyz:
комета
(kometa)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Kyrgyz:
куйруктуу жылдыз
(kuyruktuu jıldız)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Lao:
ດາວຫາງ
(dāo hāng)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Latin:
comētēs
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Latin:
stella crītīna
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Latvian:
komēta
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Lithuanian:
kometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Lü:
ᦡᦱᧁᦠᦱᧂ
(ḋaawḣaang)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Luxembourgish:
Koméit
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Macedonian:
коме́та
(kométa)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Malay:
komet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Malayalam:
ധൂമകേതു
(dhūmakētu)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Malayalam:
വാൽനക്ഷത്രം
(vālnakṣatraṁ)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Maltese:
kometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Manchu:
ᡝᡵᡳᡴᡠ ᡠᠰᡳᡥᠠ
(eriku usiha)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Māori:
unahiroa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Māori:
whetūrere
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Marathi:
धूमकेतू
(dhūmketū)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Mi'kmaq:
pugtewit
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Mongolian:
сүүлт од
(süült od)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Nandi:
cheptapis
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Navajo:
sǫʼtsoh jóhonaaʼéí yináalwołígíí
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Neapolitan:
cumeta
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Nepali:
धूमकेतु
(dhūmketu)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Norman:
conmète
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Norwegian Bokmål:
komet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Norwegian Nynorsk:
komet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Odia:
ଧୂମକେତୁ
(dhumaketu)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Okinawan:
箒星
(hōchibushi)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Okinawan:
入り髪星
(iriganbushi)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Pali:
dhūmaketu
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Pashto:
لکۍ لرونکی ستوری
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Iranian Persian:
دُنْبالِهدار
(donbâle-dâr)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Iranian Persian:
دُنْبالِه دار
(donbâle dâr)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Iranian Persian:
کومِت
(komet)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Polish:
kometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Portuguese:
cometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Punjabi:
ਧੂਮਕੇਤੂ
(dhūmketū)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Romanian:
cometă
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Russian:
коме́та
(kométa)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Sanskrit:
धूमकेतु
(dhūmaketu)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Sanskrit:
केतुतारा
(ketutārā)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Sanskrit:
उपग्रह
(upagraha)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Sanskrit:
केतु
(ketu)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Scottish Gaelic:
reul-chearbach
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Scottish Gaelic:
reul earballach
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Serbo-Croatian:
коме́та
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Serbo-Croatian:
kométa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Shan:
လၢဝ်ၵွၼ်း
(lǎao káun)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Sicilian:
cometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Sindhi:
پُڇُڙُ تارو
(pučhurru tārow)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Sinhalese:
වල්ගාතරු
(walgātaru)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Slovak:
kométa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Slovene:
komet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Slovene:
repatica
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Somali:
seef-cireed
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Somali:
dibdheer
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Spanish:
cometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Spanish:
guashuma
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Swedish:
komet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Tagalog:
barikod
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Tagalog:
kometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Tagalog:
bandus
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Tai Nüa:
ᥘᥣᥝᥞᥣᥒᥴ
(láawhaang)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Tajik:
комета
(kometa)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Tajik:
дунболадор
(dunbolador)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Tamil:
வால்வெள்ளி
(vālveḷḷi)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Tatar:
комета
(qömeta)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Tày:
đao hang
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Telugu:
తోకచుక్క
(tōkacukka)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Thai:
ดาวหาง
(daao-hǎang)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Tlingit:
xoodzí
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Turkish:
kuyruklu yıldız
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Ottoman Turkish:
قویروقلو یلدز
(kuyruklu yıldız)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Turkmen:
kometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Tuvan:
кудуруктуг сылдыс
(kuduruktug sıldıs)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Udmurt:
быжокизили
(byžokiźiľi)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Ukrainian:
коме́та
(kométa)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Urdu:
کومِٹ
(komiṭ)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Urdu:
دُم دار تارا
(dum dār tārā)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Urdu:
دُومْکیت
(dūmket)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Uyghur:
قۇيرۇقلۇق يۇلتۇز
(quyruqluq yultuz)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Uzbek:
kometa
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Vietnamese:
sao chổi
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Welsh:
comed
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Yiddish:
קאָמעט
(komet)
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Yoruba:
ìràwọ̀ onírù
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Yup'ik:
agyuliq
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Zhuang:
ndaundeiqsauqbaet
— a celestial body, generally with a tail
Zulu:
inkanyezi enomsila
— a celestial body, generally with a tail