Definition of OMICRON

omicron

Meanings

Plural: omicra, omicrons

Noun

  • the 15th letter of the Greek alphabet
  • The 15th letter of the Classical and Modern Greek alphabets (16th in Ancient and Old Greek), used in ordering lists as in naming (astronomy) the 15th star of a constellation or (epidemiology) the 15th discovered major variant of a disease.
  • Ellipsis of Omicron variant.

Origin / Etymology

From Latin omicron, from Koine Greek ὂ μῑκρόν (ò mīkrón, “little o”), named in contrast with omega (“big o”). The uncommon form omicra is similarly borrowed from Latin and Greek. The use for designating stars in a constellation—typically in order of apparent brightness—began with Johann Bayer's 1603 Uranometria.

Scrabble Score: 11

omicron is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
omicron is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
omicron is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 14

omicron is a valid Words With Friends word