welkin

wel·kin

UK/ˈwɛlkɪn/ US/ˈwɛlkən/ uncommon

noun

the apparent surface of the imaginary sphere on which celestial bodies appear to be projected

Synonyms

celestial sphere
sphere
empyrean
firmament
heavens
vault of heaven

Origin

Inherited from Middle English welkne (“weather; heavens; (earlier) cloud”), from Old English wolcnu (“sky, heavens”), plural form of wolcn (“cloud”), from Proto-West Germanic *wolkn (“cloud”), from Proto-Germanic *wulkną (“cloud”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *wĺ̥ɡ-no-m, from *welg- (“damp; wet”). Cognate with Dutch wolk (“cloud”), German Wolke (“cloud”).

Phrases

make the welkin ring
ring the welkins

Related words

Broader terms

surface

Part of

apex
celestial point
nadir
zenith
zodiac

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.