EtymologyMap
Back to all words

Trace the journey of words

Today it means

nebula

a vast cloud of interstellar gas and dust, often the site of star formation

Drag to pan · scroll to zoom
Drag to rotate

Where does the word "nebula" come from? It comes from Latin nebula, and was adopted directly into English (1700s).

Read the full story

Where does the word "nebula" come from? It comes from Latin nebula, and was adopted directly into English (1700s).

Nebula’s story begins in Latin: nebula meant “mist, cloud.” Literally mist, cloud, describing the hazy appearance of distant star clusters. It reached English by 1700s as nebula. Latin 'mist, cloud'; Charles Messier catalogued many nebulae in the 1770s. Today, nebula means a vast cloud of interstellar gas and dust, often the site of star formation.

  1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient nebula "mist, cloud", literally mist, cloud, describing the hazy appearance of distant star clusters.
  2. Stage 2 · English · 1700s nebula "a cloud of interstellar gas and dust", Latin 'mist, cloud'; Charles Messier catalogued many nebulae in the 1770s.

Browse by origin