Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
Order by: alphabetical | chronological ( asc | desc )
| First date | Word | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 1963 | multiversal adj. (1963) | of or pertaining to a multiverse n. 1 |
| 1963 | multiverse n. 1 (1963) | a space or realm of being consisting of a number of universes, of which our own universe is only one; cf. parallel universe n. |
| 1963 | mundane n. 2 (1963) | a person who is not a science-fiction fan; an outsider |
| 1963 | space-fictional n. (1963) | resembling or characteristic of space fiction n. |
| 1963 | spider sense n. (1963) | in the fictional world of the comic book hero Spider-Man: the precognitive ability to anticipate (and react to) dangerous situations beyond the normal range of human senses; (hence, in figurative or allusive use) a premonition; intuition; insight |
| 1963 | spidey sense n. (1963) | = spider sense n. |
| 1963 | TARDIS n. 1 (1963) | in the British television series Doctor Who: a time machine having the outward form of a police telephone box; (hence) any means of travelling through time |
| 1963 | wetware n. (1963) | biological structures or systems regarded as analogous to computer equipment; (specif.) the human brain; the mind, esp. when able to be affected or altered by computer processes |
| 1962 | Clarke’s Law n. (1962) | any of three maxims formulated by Arthur C. Clarke (sometimes specified as Clarke’s First Law, Clarke’s Second Law, Clarke’s Third Law): (a) ‘When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong’ (b) ‘The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible.’ (c) ‘Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic’ |
| 1962 | croggled adj. (1962) | astonished, baffled, bewildered |
| 1962 | datapad n. (1962) | a thin handheld electronic device for viewing and manipulating information; a tablet computer |
| 1962 | dystopianism n. (1962) | dystopian quality or characteristics |
| 1962 | laser cannon n. (1962) | a large weapon, similar in size to a cannon, that fires a laser |
| 1962 | loc v. (1962) | to write a loc (to) |
| 1962 | postholocaust adj. (1962) | = post-apocalyptic adj. |
| 1962 | proto-science fiction n. (1962) | literary works, written before the establishment of science fiction as a recognized genre, that prefigure the themes of science fiction, especially ones involving fantastic voyages or technological innovations |
| 1962 | sapience n. (1962) | (of non-humans) intelligence |
| 1962 | tesser v. (1962) | in Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time: to travel through space by means of a tesseract n. |
| 1962 | tesseract n. (1962) | in Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time: a means of travelling through space by manipulating the dimensions of spacetime |
| 1962 | xeno- prefix (1962) | (used to form words indicating that the base element is or relates to an alien) |
| 1961 | COA n. (1961) | notification of a change of address |
| 1961 | epic fantasy n. (1961) | = high fantasy n.; = sword and sorcery n. |
| 1961 | fan film n. (1961) | a movie made by a fan; audiovisual fan fiction n. |
| 1961 | grok v. (1961) | to perceive or understand fully; to feel empathy with; to enjoy, appreciate |
| 1961 | heroic fantasy n. (1961) | = sword and sorcery n. |
| 1961 | in-system adv. (1961) | in or into a solar system; toward the center of a solar system; cf. out-system adv. |
| 1961 | jumpspace n. (1961) | hyperspace n.; the (notional) space in which ships travel during a jump |
| 1961 | light n. 2 (1961) | a light year |
| 1961 | loc n. (1961) | a letter written to a magazine, esp. a fanzine |
| 1961 | sensawunda n. (1961) | = sense of wonder n. |
| 1961 | starfarer n. (1961) | an interstellar traveller |
| 1960 | chrononaut n. (1960) | = time traveller n. |