English Explanatory Dictionary

peryton

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A fictional creature having the head and forelegs of a stag and the wings and hindquarters of a bird.
  2. A radio signal which appears to come from outside the galaxy but is actually produced by terrestrial sources.

Word forms

peryton perytons

Etymology

Coined by the translator Norman Thomas di Giovanni translating Jorge Luis Borges' Book of Imaginary Beings, from Borges' invented Spanish peritio. Astrophysical use began with a paper by S. Burke-Spolaor et al. (see quotations).

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