Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction
Order by: alphabetical | chronological ( asc | desc )
| First date | Word | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Tardis-like adj. (1984) | denoting something whose capacity is greater than is suggested by its exterior appearance |
| 1984 | threedy n. (1984) | three-dimensional television or film |
| 1983 | cryosuspension n. (1983) | = cryostasis n. |
| 1983 | filking n. (1983) | among science fiction and fantasy fans: the writing or performing of filk songs |
| 1983 | jump pilot n. (1983) | one who pilots a spaceship through a jump n. |
| 1983 | power-up n. (1983) | in a video game: an item that immediately provides temporary extra abilities to a player |
| 1983 | teleport n. 3 (1983) | an act of teleportation n. |
| 1983 | vape v. (1983) | to vaporize by means of a weapon; to destroy completely, annihilate |
| 1982 | cyberspace n. (1982) | the notional environment within which electronic communication occurs, esp. when represented as the inside of a computer system; space perceived as such by an observer but generated by a computer system and having no real existence; a virtual reality environment |
| 1982 | gravitics n. 2 (1982) | any of various devices making use of gravity or gravitational waves, as (a) sensors that use gravitational waves to detect objects in space; (b) a system that creates artificial gravity |
| 1982 | Kobayashi Maru n. (1982) | in the Star Trek universe: a training exercise in which a cadet commanding a ship must rescue a civilian vessel in enemy territory, with any strategy leading to an unsuccessful outcome; (hence) any no-win situation, esp. one used as a test of character |
| 1982 | nowhen adv. (1982) | (in time-travel contexts): in or at no time |
| 1982 | Whovian n. (1982) | a fan of the British television series Doctor Who |
| 1981 | big dumb object n. (1981) | a large, mysterious, alien-made artifact encountered in space or on another world |
| 1981 | Clarke belt n. (1981) | the ring-shaped region around the Earth containing all possible geostationary orbits |
| 1981 | doppel n. (1981) | a duplicate version of a person, as a clone, a virtual-reality representation, a shapeshifter, etc. |
| 1981 | filker n. (1981) | one who sings filk songs; = filk singer n. |
| 1981 | flux capacitor n. (1981) | in the film Back to the Future and its sequels: the core component of the time machine made of a DeLorean automobile |
| 1981 | Jedi mind trick n. (1981) | in the fictional universe of the Star Wars franchise: a telepathic technique of psychological manipulation used by the Jedi |
| 1981 | jump engine n. (1981) | = jump drive n. |
| 1981 | SF/F n. (1981) | science fiction and fantasy, regarded as a single broad genre |
| 1981 | skin job n. 2 (1981) | a robot that has skin; (spec.) an android that cannot easily be distinguished from a human |
| 1981 | utopian adj. (1981) | possessing or regarded as having impossibly or extravagantly ideal conditions in respect of politics, customs, social organization, etc. |
| 1980 | carbonite n. (1980) | a carbon-based material in which a person can be cryogenically preserved |
| 1980 | replicant n. 1 (1980) | an artificial being in the form of a human or other creature; an android |
| 1980 | uplift v. (1980) | to transform a non-sentient species into a sentient species, esp. by genetic engineering |
| 1980 | uplift n. (1980) | the making of a sentient species from a non-sentient one, esp. by genetic engineering |
| 1980 | uplifting n. (1980) | = uplift n. |
| 1980 | xenopsychologist n. (1980) | an expert in xenopsychology n. |
| 1979 | beanstalk n. (1979) | = space elevator n. |
| 1979 | Betelgeusean n. 2 (1979) | the language of Betelgeuseans |
| 1979 | coreward adj. (1979) | toward the center of a galaxy; cf. core n. |