Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
Order by: alphabetical | chronological
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| light sail n. (1963) | = solar sail n. |
| light-second n. (1908) | the distance light travels in one second |
| lightspeed n. 1 (1856) | the speed of light |
| light-speed n. 2 (1929) | a unit of measure of speed equal to the speed of light; cf. light n. 1 |
| light-week n. (1934) | the distance light travels in one week |
| light-year n. (1864) | the distance light travels in one year |
| little green man n. (1907) | a intelligent humanoid inhabitant of outer space, esp. when regarded as stereotypical of hackneyed science fiction |
| loc n. (1961) | a letter written to a magazine, esp. a fanzine |
| loc v. (1962) | to write a loc (to) |
| Loonie n. (1941) | a native or inhabitant of the Moon; = Lunarian n.; Lunite n.; Lunarite n. |
| Lovecraftian n. (1944) | a devotee or follower of H.P. Lovecraft |
| Lovecraftian adj. (1927) | of, relating to, or characteristic of the writing of H. P. Lovecraft, esp. in featuring elements of supernatural and often existential horror |
| lox n. (1965) | plural of loc |
| Luna n. (1876) | the Moon |
| Luna City n. (1934) | the main city on the Moon |
| Lunarian n. (1708) | a native or inhabitant of the Moon |
| Lunarian adj. (1813) | of or characteristic of the Moon |
| Lunarite n. (1888) | a native or inhabitant of the Moon; = Lunarian n.; Lunite n. |
| lunarscape n. (1908) | a landscape on the Moon |
| Lunite n. (1928) | a native or inhabitant of the Moon; = Lunarian n.; Lunarite n. |
| mad scientist n. (1883) | a scientist who is insane or eccentric, esp. so as to be dangerous or evil: a stock figure of melodramatic horror stories |
| mag- prefix (1943) | magnetic |
| mainstream adj. (1953) | belonging to or characteristic of the dominant or traditional literary modes, especially representational fiction |
| manga n. (1951) | a Japanese genre of cartoons and comic books, typically drawn in a meticulously detailed style, usually featuring characters with distinctive large, staring eyes, sometimes including violent or sexually explicit material |
| Marsian n. 1 (1853) | a native or inhabitant of the planet Mars; = Martian n. 1 |
| Marsian n. 2 (1882) | the language of Marsians; = Martian n. 2 |
| Marsian adj. (1882) | of or relating to the the planet Mars or its inhabitants; = Martian adj. |
| marsquake n. (1912) | seismic activity on the surface of Mars |
| Martian n. 1 (1868) | a native or inhabitant of the planet Mars; cf. earlier Marsian n. 1 |
| Martian n. 2 (1898) | the language of Martians |
| Martian adj. (1873) | of or relating to the the planet Mars or its inhabitants |
| Martianess n. (1898) | a female Martian |
| Mary Sue n. (1976) | a writer who inserts an idealized version of themselves in their own fan fiction n.; such a story or character |