Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
Order by: alphabetical | chronological
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| null-grav adj. (1955) | = null-g n. |
| null-gravity n. (No cites) | see null-g n. |
| ob- prefix (1993) | denoting 'obligatory or expected reference to' a topic |
| off-planet n. (1959) | an off-planet location |
| off-planet adj. (1945) | originating on another planet; located away from a (particular) planet |
| off-planet adv. (1953) | away from a particular planet; towards or on another planet; in or into space |
| off-trail adj. (1933) | (of a story, esp. one that is not easily categorized) fantastic or science-fictional |
| offworld n. (1987) | a place away from Earth, or a particular planet or world regarded as the native world; another world or planet |
| off-world adj. (1950) | of or relating to another world; originating from or located in a place outside one’s native world or planet |
| offworld adv. (1943) | away from Earth, or any place treated within a given fictional context as the native world; on or towards another world or planet |
| offworlder n. (1957) | a person or being from another planet; an alien |
| omniverse n. (1948) | all universes collectively; cf. multiverse n. 1 |
| orbital tower n. (1975) | a structure linking a planet, moon, etc., with a space station or satellite which is in stationary orbit around it; cf. skyhook n. 4 |
| organlegger n. (1967) | a person who illegally removes organs from people or corpses and sells them to use for transplantation |
| organlegging n. (1969) | the illegal trading of human organs for transplant; cf. organlegger n. |
| Orwellian n. (1971) | an admirer of the works and ideas of George Orwell |
| Orwellian adj. (1949) | characteristic or suggestive of the writings of George Orwell, esp. of the totalitarian state depicted in his dystopian account of the future, Nineteen Eighty-four (1949) |
| other-dimensional adj. (1934) | of or from another dimension |
| otherspace n. (1937) | any of various types of space, as hyperspace or subspace, subject to different physical laws than our own; cf. realspace n. |
| outer space n. (1842) | the region of space beyond Earth’s atmosphere or beyond the solar system; in extended use: a place or region beyond the usual limits of awareness or accessibility |
| out-planet n. (1943) | = outworld n. |
| out-planet adj. (1944) | = outworld adj. |
| out-system n. (1957) | an area outside of a solar system |
| out-system adj. (1949) | of or relating to another solar system; outside of a solar system; cf. in-system adj. |
| out-system adv. (1951) | in or toward the outer parts of a solar system; away from a solar system’s star; outside of a solar system; cf. in-system adv. |
| outworld n. (1902) | a planet that is remote from the homeworld; a planet far from a solar system’s star |
| outworld adj. (1932) | on or from another planet, esp. one remote from the homeworld or far from a solar system’s star |
| outworlder n. (1934) | someone from an outworld n.; an alien; an outsider |
| out-worldly adj. (1934) | from an outworld n.; foreign, unusual |
| overdrive n. (1945) | = hyperdrive n. |
| overmind n. (1949) | a single, non-material consciousness composed of the consciousnesses of a large number of beings |
| Padawan n. (1973) | in the fictional universe of the Star Wars franchise: an apprentice Jedi; also (often humorously) in extended and allusive use: a youthful, naive, or untrained person |
| pantropy n. (1952) | James Blish’s term for: the modification of humans, esp. by genetic engineering, to make them able to survive in an alien environment |
| paradise planet n. (1948) | a planet regarded as peaceful or beautiful, esp. one having unspoilt natural beauty; cf. pleasure planet n. |
| parallel universe n. (1923) | a universe conceived of as existing alongside our own, having many similarities to it but usually differing from it in some (single) significant way (as having a different history or different physical laws) |
| parallel world n. (1931) | a world that exists alongside or in addition to the known world; = parallel universe n. |
| parking orbit n. (1941) | an orbit around the earth or some other planet from which a space vehicle can be launched farther into space; also, an orbit which is stable and from which visits to the planet surface can conveniently be made |
| Peter Parker principle n. (No cites) | see Spider-Man principle n. |