sputnik

(redirected from sputniks)
Also found in: Thesaurus, Encyclopedia.

Sput·nik

 (spo͝ot′nĭk, spŭt′-, spo͞ot′nyĭk)
n.
Any of a series of Soviet satellites sent into Earth orbit, especially the first, launched October 4, 1957.

[Russian sputnik (zemli), fellow traveler (of Earth) : so-, s-, together; see ksun in Indo-European roots + put', path, way; see pent- in Indo-European roots + -nik, n. suff.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Sputnik

(ˈspʊtnɪk; ˈspʌt-)
n
(Astronautics) any of a series of unmanned Soviet satellites, Sputnik 1 (launched in 1957) being the first man-made satellite to orbit the earth
[C20: from Russian, literally: fellow traveller, from s- with + put path + -nik suffix indicating agent]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

sput•nik

(ˈspʊt nɪk, ˈspʌt-)

n.
(sometimes cap.) any of a series of Soviet earth-orbiting satellites.
[1957; < Russian: satellite, traveling companion]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.sputnik - a Russian artificial satellitesputnik - a Russian artificial satellite; "Sputnik was the first man-made satellite to orbit the earth"
artificial satellite, orbiter, satellite - man-made equipment that orbits around the earth or the moon
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
Translations
spoutnik

sputnik

[ˈspʊtnɪk] Nsatélite m artificial
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

Sputnik

nSputnik m
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

sputnik

[ˈspʊtnɪk] nsputnik m inv
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
References in periodicals archive ?
The launch of the second satellite was an even greater Soviet propaganda coup and in a statement to the fortieth anniversary session of the USSR's Supreme Soviet Khrushchev challenged the USA to compete, saying: 'Our sputniks circle the Earth and wait for American and other sputniks to appear alongside and provide companionship.
The small metal object, which had dented their pride and led many of their citizens to fear that a nuclear attack was imminent, was Sputnik.
what with Sputniks in space and Patrick Moore stargazing, a telescope was the essential sky watchers' piece of kit.
The IBC's, known colloquially as 'Sputniks', are used to collect pre-weighed milled sugar and other dry ingredients which are then discharged into dough mixers.
The photographs taken by Russian sputniks and American Ranger missions in the '60s placed a premium on accuracy; the estheticizing idealism of solitary 19th-century selenographers had been replaced by the scientificity of highly trained specialists in the service of government agencies.
Reconsidering Sputnik: Forty Years Since the Soviet Satellite.
The Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1, the world's first artificial satellite, on October 4, 1957.