meteor: [15] Greek metéōron meant literally ‘something high up’, and was used to denote ‘phenomena in the sky or heavens’. It was a compound noun formed from the intensive prefix metá- and *eōr-, a variant form of the base of the verb aeírein ‘raise’. When English first took it over, via medieval Latin meteōrum, it was still in the sense ‘phenomenon of the atmosphere or weather’ (‘hoar frosts … and such like cold meteors’, Abraham Fleming, Panoplie of Epistles 1576), an application which survives, of course, in the derivative meteorology [17].
The earliest evidence of the specific use of meteor for a ‘shooting star’ comes from the end of the 16th century. The derivative meteorite, for a meteor that hits the ground, was coined in the early 19th century. => meteorology
meteor (n.)
late 15c., "any atmospheric phenomenon," from Middle French meteore (13c.) and directly from Medieval Latin meteorum (nominative meteora), from Greek ta meteora "the celestial phenomena, things in heaven above," plural of meteoron, literally "thing high up," noun use of neuter of meteoros (adj.) "high up, raised from the ground, hanging," from meta- "over, beyond" (see meta-) + -aoros "lifted, hovering in air," related to aeirein "to raise" (see aorta).
Specific sense of "fireball, shooting star" is attested from 1590s. Atmospheric phenomena were formerly classified as aerial meteors (wind), aqueous meteors (rain, snow, hail), luminous meteors (aurora, rainbows), and igneous meteors (lightning, shooting stars).
双语例句
1. A bright shooting star, or meteor, is an unforgettable sight.
明亮的流星，或者说陨石，是番难忘的景象。
来自柯林斯例句
2. Like a flash of lightning, the meteor shot across the sky.
流星像一道闪光划过天空.
来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
3. It was made by a meteor that fell from space.
它是由流星从太空中坠落造成的.
来自英语晨读30分（高三）
4. At several specific times of a year, great meteor showers occur.
