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⇱ Halley's comet - WordReference.com Dictionary of English

Halley's comet

US:USA pronunciation: respellingUSA pronunciation: respelling(hal′ēz or, sometimes, hā′lēz)


WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
Hal′ley's com′et  (hal′ēz or, sometimes, hā′lēz),USA pronunciation n. 
  1. Astronomya comet with a period averaging 76 years. In this century it was visible to terrestrial observers just before and after reaching perihelion in 1910 and again in 1986.
  • named after Edmund Halley, who first predicted its return
    The common pronunciation for both the comet and the astronomer after whom it is named is (hal′ē).USA pronunciation This is the pronunciation usually recommended by astronomers. However, several variant spellings of the name, including Hailey, Haley, and Hawley, were used interchangeably during the astronomer's own time, a period when spellings even of proper names were not yet fixed, and corresponding pronunciations have survived. The pronunciation (hā′lē)USA pronunciation in particular remains associated with Halley's comet; it is less likely to be heard as a pronunciation of Edmund Halley.
'Halley's comet' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
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