Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
Order by: alphabetical | chronological ( asc | desc )
| First date | Word | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 1937 | spacewoman n. (1937) | a female space traveller; (also) a female or feminine person or being from another planet |
| 1937 | stfnal adj. (1937) | = science fictional adj. |
| 1937 | subspace n. (1937) | a physical space subject to different physical laws from our own, typically allowing motion or communication at speeds greater than the speed of light |
| 1937 | superhero n. (1937) | a person who uses superpowers or superscience for benevolent purposes |
| 1937 | thionite n. (1937) | an addictive drug which induces euphoric dreams |
| 1937 | time warp n. (1937) | a distortion of space-time by which people or objects at one point in time can be (instantly) moved to another, or within which time moves at a different speed |
| 1937 | vacuum-suited adj. (1937) | wearing a vacuum suit n. |
| 1938 | annish n. (1938) | the issue of a fanzine published on the anniversary of the first issue’s publication |
| 1938 | apa n. (1938) | an organization of (science fiction) fans that distributes fanzines contributed by most or all of the members; cf. apazine n. |
| 1938 | completist n. (1938) | one who wishes to have or collect complete sets of something |
| 1938 | continuum n. (1938) | a universe; dimension n. |
| 1938 | Earth-norm n. (1938) | = Earth-normal n. |
| 1938 | fan fiction n. (1938) | fiction written by a fan rather than a professional author, esp. that based on already-existing characters from a television series, book, film, etc.; (also) a piece of such writing |
| 1938 | Flash Gordon adj. (1938) | = science fictional adj.; (specif.) characteristic of hackneyed or dated science fiction; Buck Rogers adj. |
| 1938 | mech n. (1938) | = robot n.; (also) = mecha n. 1 |
| 1938 | mind-controlled adj. (1938) | of a device or a being: controlled by another person’s thoughts |
| 1938 | mind shield n. (1938) | = thought shield n. |
| 1938 | mundane adj. 1 (1938) | belonging or relating to the world which lies outside the sphere of interest of a particular group of enthusiasts; non-science fictional; mainstream adj. |
| 1938 | sfnal adj. (1938) | = science fictional adj. |
| 1938 | space bum n. (1938) | a spacer who wanders aimlessly; a vagrant in space; (also) a spacer who is regarded as contemptible |
| 1938 | space dock n. (1938) | a spaceport or space station, esp. one where a spaceship can undergo repair or take on supplies |
| 1938 | spacehand n. (1938) | someone who works or has experience working in space, esp. a low-ranking member of a spaceship crew |
| 1938 | stfandom n. (1938) | science-fiction fandom |
| 1938 | subetheric adj. (1938) | of, relating to, or involving a sub-ether n. (esp. with allusion to a means of faster-than-light communication) |
| 1938 | suited adj. (1938) | wearing a spacesuit |
| 1938 | telescanner n. (1938) | a scanner, esp. one used for remote visual examination |
| 1938 | time-warped adj. (1938) | transported from the past or future by a time warp n. |
| 1938 | tin can n. (1938) | a spaceship or space station |
| 1938 | uchronia n. (1938) | = alternate history n. |
| 1938 | uchronic adj. (1938) | of or relating to uchronias |
| 1938 | vac-suit n. (1938) | = vacuum suit n. |
| 1938 | zero-gravity n. (1938) | the state or condition in which there is no apparent force of gravity acting on a body, either because the force is locally weak, or because both the body and its surroundings are freely and equally accelerating under the force |
| 1939 | Aldebaranian n. 2 (1939) | the language of Aldebaranians |
| 1939 | astrogational adj. (1939) | of or relating to astrogation n. |
| 1939 | bug-eyed monster n. (1939) | a monstrous alien with bulging eyes, esp. as a clichéd subject for cover illustrations in early science fiction magazines; cf. BEM n. |