# galaxy

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈɡæl.ək.si/ · frequency rank #4,450

## Definitions
1. The Milky Way; the apparent band of concentrated stars which appears in the night sky over earth.
2. Any of the collections of many millions or billions of stars, galactic dust, black holes, etc. existing as independent and coherent systems, of which there are billions in the known universe.
3. An assemblage of things or people seen as luminous or brilliant.
4. Any print or pattern reminiscent of a galaxy, generally consisting of blending, semiopaque patches of vibrant color on a dark background.

## Etymology
From Middle English galaxye, galaxie, from Old French galaxie, from Latin galaxias, from Ancient Greek γαλαξίας (galaxías, “Milky Way”), shortening of γαλαξίας κύκλος (galaxías kúklos, “milky circle”), from γάλα (gála, “milk”).

## Easily confused with
- **galley** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/galaxy-vs-galley)
- **Galway** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/galaxy-vs-galway)
- **gala** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/gala-vs-galaxy)

## Common misspellings (9)
`aglaxy`, `gaalxy`, `galaxxy`, `galaxyy`, `galayx`, `gallaxy`, `galxay`, `ggalaxy`, `glaaxy`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/galaxy