orbit
/ˈɔɹ.bɪt/noun, verb
orbit is spelled O-R-B-I-T: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 11 times per million words in written English, the 6,784th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, orbit means “An elliptical movement of an object about a celestial object or Lagrange point, especially a periodic elliptical revolution” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of orbit is orbits.
How many letters and syllables are in orbit?
| Letters | 5: O-R-B-I-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 11 times per million words; the 6,784th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is orbit?
Orbit appears 11 times per million words in written English, the 6,784th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce orbit?
- UK /ˈɔː.bɪt/
- US /ˈɔɹ.bɪt/
Orbit has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-orbit.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of orbit
- orbits plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- orbiting participle, present
- orbited participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does orbit mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An elliptical movement of an object about a celestial object or Lagrange point, especially a periodic elliptical revolution.
- 2
One complete circuit round an orbited body.
The Moon's orbit around the Earth takes nearly one month to complete.
- 3
The state of moving in an orbit.
- 4
The path of an electron around an atomic nucleus.
- 5
A path for the ball on the outer edge of the playfield, usually connected so that the ball entering in one end will come out of the other.
- 6
A sphere of influence; an area or extent of activity, interest, or control.
In the post WWII era, several eastern European countries came into the orbit of the Soviet Union.
- 7
The bony cavity in the skull of a vertebrate containing the eyeball.
- 8
The area around the eye of a bird or other animal.
verb
- 1
To circle or revolve around another object or position.
The Earth orbits the Sun.
- 2
To place an object (e.g. a satellite) into an orbit around a planet.
A rocket was used to orbit the satellite.
- 3
To move around the general vicinity of something.
The harried mother had a cloud of children orbiting her, begging for sweets.
- 4
To move in a circle.
- 5
To center (around).
- 6
To continue to follow or engage with someone by means of social media after breaking up with them.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Orbit in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | orbite , orbiter autour de , mettre en orbite |
| German | Umlaufbahn, Orbit , umkreisen , in Umlaufbahn bringen , umschwirren |
| Portuguese | órbita, círculo , orbitar |
| Spanish | órbita , orbitar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does orbit come from?
Inherited from Middle English orbite, orbita, from Latin orbita (“course, track, impression, mark”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).