Spanish word

nova

Pronunciation

IPA/ˈnoβa/

Meaning

  • feminine nounnova

Example

¿Has oído hablar de la nova?

Have you heard of the nova?

Illustration for nova (nova)

More examples

La nova local consiguió muchos seguidores en redes.

The local rising star gained many followers on social media.

Core concept

A temporary increase in a star's brightness that makes it look like a new star.

Common phrases

  • una nova del pop

    rising pop star

  • la nova local

    local rising star

  • la nova del equipo

    rising star of the team

Similar words

estrella: Self-luminous celestial body visible in the night sky.
supernova: Violent stellar explosion that makes a star extremely bright for a short time.
planeta: Body orbiting a star that does not emit its own light.
cometa: Small icy and dusty body that develops a tail when it nears the sun.

Definition in Spanish

Fenómeno estelar en el que una estrella se vuelve temporalmente mucho más luminosa y parece una estrella nueva.

Word origin

The term comes from Latin novus 'new' through medieval Latin nova stella 'new star' and reflects observers' impression of a star suddenly appearing brighter.

Usage tips

  • In everyday Spanish, nova is treated as a technical astronomical term rather than a casual synonym for 'new', so speakers rarely use it to mean 'recently created'.

Opposites

Related words

  • novatonewcomernoun

Word lists with this word