Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction

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First date Word Definition
1945 first contact n. (1945) the first meeting between two different intelligent species
1945 kiloday n. (1945) a period of one thousand days
1945 kiloyear n. (1945) a period of one thousand years
1945 newfan n. (1945) a fan new to fandom, or to science fiction in general
1945 newfen n. (1945) plural of newfan n.
1945 off-planet adj. (1945) originating on another planet; located away from a (particular) planet
1945 overdrive n. (1945) = hyperdrive n.
1945 planet v. (1945) to land on or arrive at a planet; hence planeted adj.
1945 planet-hopping n. (1945) the action of making (short) trips from one planet to another
1945 psychohistorian n. (1945) an expert in psychohistory n.
1945 robo- prefix (1945) (used to form nouns with the sense β€˜a robotic or automatic ——’)
1945 space platform n. (1945) = space station n.
1945 videophone v. (1945) to call or speak to via videophone n.; to make a call on a videophone n.
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 Denebian n. 2 (1946) the language of Denebians
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 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 semiprozine n. (1946) a periodical 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
1946 stun gun n. (1946) a weapon that renders a victim unconscious or incapacitated without causing serious injury; cf. earlier stunner n.
1946 teleporting n. (1946) the action of teleporting; = teleportation n.
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 bemmy n. (1947) = BEM n.
1947 Capellan adj. (1947) of or relating to the Capella system or its inhabitants
1947 catastrophe adj. (1947) = disaster adj.
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