asterism : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: asterism	by the DICT Development Group
2 results for asterism
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
asterism n (mineralogy) a star-shaped figure with six rays that is seen in some crystal structures under reflected or transmitted light (astronomy) a cluster of stars (or a small constellation)
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Asterism \As`ter*ism\, n. [Gr. [?], fr. 'asth`r star; cf. F. ast[82]risme.] 1. (Astron.) (a) A constellation. [Obs.] (b) A small cluster of stars. 2. (Printing) (a) An asterisk, or mark of reference. [R.] (b) Three asterisks placed in this manner, [asterism], to direct attention to a particular passage. 3. (Crystallog.) An optical property of some crystals which exhibit a star-shaped by reflected light, as star sapphire, or by transmitted light, as some mica.