Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
Order by: alphabetical | chronological
Word | Definition |
---|---|
Klingon n. (1967) | in the fictional universe of the Star Trek franchise: a member of a humanoid alien race, characterized by authoritarian brutality and a strict code of honor; (also) the language of this race, now widely studied as an artificial language |
Kobayashi Maru n. (1982) | in the Star Trek universe: a training exercise in which a cadet commanding a ship must rescue a civilian vessel in enemy territory, with any strategy leading to an unsuccessful outcome; (hence) any no-win situation, esp. one used as a test of character |
Kornbluthian adj. (1941) | of, relating to, or characteristic of the writing of Cyril M. Kornbluth |
kryptonite n. (1943) | in the fictional world of the comic book hero Superman: a substance that renders Superman weak when he is exposed to it; (hence, in figurative or allusive use) something that can weaken or damage a particular person or thing; an Achilles heel |
K/S n. (1978) | a subgenre of science fiction, originally published in fanzines and now esp. online, in which the Star Trek characters Kirk and Spock are portrayed as having a homosexual relationship; (later) any similar fiction in which a pair of (established) male characters is so portrayed |
landspeeder n. (1977) | in the fictional universe of the Star Wars franchise: a small vehicle that uses antigravity technology to hover close to the ground |
laser cannon n. (1962) | a large weapon, similar in size to a cannon, that fires a laser |
laser gun n. (1963) | a weapon that fires a laser |
laser pistol n. (1963) | a hand weapon of similar size to a pistol that fires a laser |
laser rifle n. (1963) | a long shoulder weapon that fires a laser |
lasgun n. (1965) | = laser gun n. |
launching laser n. (1971) | a high-powered laser used for the launching of spacecraft, either by vaporizing propellant at the rear of the craft, or by radiation pressure on a solar sail n. |
Law of Robotics n. (1944) | in the writing of Isaac Asimov: each of three (later sometimes four) rules devised to govern the behaviour of robots |
legendarium n. (1951) | a body or system of myths, legends, stories, etc., concerning or relating to a particular fictional world; a work or body of work containing this |
letterhack n. (1942) | a fan who frequently writes letters to magazine or fanzine letter columns |
lifeboat n. (1907) | a small spacecraft designed for escaping from a damaged spaceship or space station; cf. lifeship n.; escape ship n. |
lifeship n. (1930) | an emergency spacecraft; lifeboat n. |
life tube n. (1930) | an escape pod having a cylindrical shape; cf. lifeboat n. |
light n. 1 (1934) | = lightspeed, used as a unit of measure; cf. light-speed n. 2 |
light n. 2 (1961) | a light year |
light barrier n. 1 (1930) | a force field made of beams of light |
light barrier n. 2 (1950) | the speed of light, as a theoretical limit of speed of any object |
light-century n. (1908) | the distance light travels in 100 years |
light-day n. (1933) | the distance light travels in 24 hours |
light-hour n. (1920) | the distance light travels in one hour |
light-minute n. (1914) | the distance light travels in one minute |
light-month n. (1933) | the distance light travels in one month |
lightsaber n. (1975) | in the fictional universe of the Star Wars franchise: a weapon resembling a sword, but having a destructive beam of light in place of a blade |
light sail n. (1963) | = solar sail n. |