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Milky Way (n.)
"the galaxy as seen in the night sky," late 14c., loan-translation of Latin via lactea; see galaxy. Formerly in Middle English also Milken-Way and Milky Cercle. The ancients speculated on what it was; some guessed it was a vast assemblage of stars (Democrates, Pythagoras, even Ovid); the question was settled when Galileo, using his telescope, reported that the whole of it was resolvable into stars. Old native names for it include Jacob's Ladder, the Way to St. James's, and Watling Street (late 14c.).
updated on January 19, 2019
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Dictionary entries near Milky Way
milk-snake
milksop
milktoast
milkweed
milky
Milky Way
mill
millage
mill-dam
millenarian
millenarianism