suborbital

adjective

sub·​or·​bit·​al ˌsəb-ˈȯr-bə-tᵊl How to pronounce suborbital (audio)
1
: situated beneath the eye or the orbit of the eye
2
: being or involving less than one orbit (as of the earth or moon)
also : intended for suborbital flight

Examples of suborbital in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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For instance, space tourism has gotten off the ground; wealthy people can book trips to suborbital space, and the super-rich can fly all the way to Earth orbit, as the experience of NASA chief Jared Isaacman shows. Mike Wall, Space.com, 3 July 2026 Deep Blue Aerospace plans to offer suborbital tourist flights beginning in 2027, using a business model similar to that of Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin. Rainer Zitelmann, Fortune, 2 July 2026 These suborbital flights, echoing the trajectory of the first American astronaut to fly into space during the dawn of the superpower Space Race I, would similarly transform these voyagers into spacefarers joining the egalitarian Space Race II. Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 25 June 2026 The first Starfall Demo mission will spend a few hours in low-Earth orbit, but the vehicle could also fly on shorter suborbital trajectories after launching on either Falcon 9 or the much larger Starship rocket. Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 23 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for suborbital

Word History

First Known Use

1803, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of suborbital was in 1803

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Cite this Entry

“Suborbital.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/suborbital. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.

Medical Definition

suborbital

adjective
sub·​or·​bit·​al ˌsəb-ˈȯr-bət-ᵊl How to pronounce suborbital (audio)
: situated or occurring beneath the eye or the orbit of the eye
suborbital fat
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