gibbous

/'gibəs/

Thân thiện

The moon appears gibbous in the clear night sky.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Protuberant or convex in shape: Describes something that is rounded, bulging, or humped.
   • Of the moon: More than half but less than fully illuminated, describing the phases between a half moon and a full moon.
   • Having a hump or hunch: Characteristic of an abnormal curvature of the spine, such as kyphosis.

Usage and Examples

• Describing a shape:

  • The old man had a gibbous back.
  • The gibbous surface of the ancient shield was dented in the center.

• Describing the moon:

  • We watched the gibbous moon rise over the mountains.
  • The sky was clear, revealing a bright, waxing gibbous moon.

Advanced Usage

• Astronomical context: The term is most precisely used in astronomy to describe the specific lunar phases known as "waxing gibbous" (between first quarter and full) and "waning gibbous" (between full and last quarter).

  • The waning gibbous moon provided enough light to walk the path at night.

• Literary or descriptive context: Used to evoke a vivid image of a rounded, bulging form.

  • The gibbous clouds promised a coming storm.

Variants and Related Words

• Gibbosities (n, plural): The state of being gibbous; protuberances.

  • The surface of the planet was marked by various gibbosities.

• Gibbously (adv): In a gibbous manner.

  • The rock curved gibbously out from the cliff face.

Synonyms

• Protuberant: Swelling or bulging outward.
• Convex: Having a surface or outline curved outward like the exterior of a sphere or circle.
• Humped: Having a hump.
• Hunchbacked: Having a back deformed by a hump (archaic or potentially offensive in a medical context; "kyphotic" is the preferred clinical term).

Different Meanings

1. Primary Physical Shape: The general meaning refers to any rounded bulge or hump.
2. Specific Lunar Phase: A technical term in astronomy for a moon more than half full.
3. Medical/Anatomical Description: Pertaining to a hunched back, though "kyphotic" is more standard in modern medical terminology.

Related Phrases and Idioms

(Note: "Gibbous" is a descriptive adjective and is not commonly used in phrasal verbs or idioms. Its usage is typically literal.) - Gibbous moon: The standard astronomical term for the lunar phase. - The harvest was traditionally begun under a gibbous moon.

Học thuật

Adjective

1. (used of the moon) more than half full
2. characteristic of or suffering from kyphosis, an abnormality of the vertebral column

Từ đồng nghĩa

• gibbose
• crookback
• crookbacked
• humped
• humpbacked
• hunchbacked
• kyphotic