Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
Order by: alphabetical | chronological ( asc | desc )
| First date | Word | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 1948 | three-D n. (1948) | a device or system capable of transmitting or displaying a three dimensional image or video; (also) a three-dimensional image or video; cf. tri-D n. |
| 1948 | Venerian n. 2 (1948) | the language of Venerians |
| 1948 | warp drive n. (1948) | a device by which a spaceship is enabled to travel through space by means of a space warp; a faster-than-light drive |
| 1947 | astroengineer n. (1947) | an engineer who works on spacecraft or in space; a person who designs or operates the propulsion systems of spacecraft |
| 1947 | crudzine n. (1947) | a zine regarded as low quality |
| 1947 | earthie n. (1947) | = earthling n. |
| 1947 | Earthside adv. (1947) | on or towards Earth |
| 1947 | flying saucer n. (1947) | any of various unidentified disc- or saucer-shaped objects reported as appearing in the sky, presumed to be of extraterrestrial origin; (hence) a saucer-shaped alien spacecraft |
| 1947 | Frankenstein complex n. (1947) | Isaac Asimov’s term for: the anxiety and distrust humans feel for robots |
| 1947 | hypospray n. (1947) | an injection device that forces a fine, high-pressure jet of fluid through the skin without breaking it |
| 1947 | ion drive n. (1947) | a spacecraft propulsion system that uses electrically accelerated ions |
| 1947 | nonhumanoid adj. (1947) | not having a human or human-like bodily form |
| 1947 | primary world n. (1947) | the real world, as opposed to the secondary world of a work of fiction |
| 1947 | prime directive n. (1947) | a chief objective, goal, or requirement; a rule or law that overrides or guides other rules or laws; (specif.) a rule forbidding interference in the affairs of less developed planets or cultures |
| 1947 | saucer n. (1947) | = flying saucer n. |
| 1947 | saucerian n. (1947) | a being that travels in a flying saucer; = alien n. |
| 1947 | secondary world n. (1947) | the setting of a work of fantasy where this setting is different from the real world, but is internally consistent; cf. primary world n. |
| 1947 | semiprozine n. (1947) | a magazine that is between the levels of fanzine and prozine in some category such as circulation, quality of printing, etc.; a well-produced or widely circulated fanzine |
| 1947 | sentience n. 2 (1947) | an intelligent being |
| 1947 | space v. 1 (1947) | to travel to or in space; cf. earlier spacing n. 1 |
| 1947 | sub-creation n. (1947) | J. R. R. Tolkien’s word for: the action or process of creating a fully realized and internally consistent imaginary or secondary world n. |
| 1947 | sub-creator n. (1947) | J. R. R. Tolkien's word for: a person who creates a secondary world (see sub-creation n.); (later also more generally) an author regarded as occupying the position of God in relation to his or her own fictional creation |
| 1947 | sublight adj. (1947) | occurring below the speed of light; (also) relating to travel at speeds below the speed of light |
| 1947 | universe n. (1947) | the setting of a work or series of fiction, esp. of imaginative fiction |
| 1946 | braintape n. (1946) | a recording of the (entire) contents of a person’s mind |
| 1946 | combozine n. (1946) | a collection of zines bound or published together, esp. for distribution at a convention |
| 1946 | hyperdrive n. (1946) | a spaceship drive that enables travel faster than the speed of light; (also) the state of such travel; cf. hyperspace n. |
| 1946 | jet car n. (1946) | a form of aircar powered by jets |
| 1946 | mundane n. 1 (1946) | a non-imaginative story |
| 1946 | non-terrestrial n. (1946) | an (intelligent) being that is not from Earth; = extraterrestrial n., alien n. |
| 1946 | planet-hopping adj. (1946) | that planet-hops; of or relating to planet-hopping n. |
| 1946 | pocket universe n. (1946) | a universe or reality completely separate from ours which is much smaller, may have different natural laws, and may be artificially created |
| 1946 | stun gun n. (1946) | a weapon that renders a victim unconscious or incapacitated without causing serious injury; cf. earlier stunner n. |