atlas
noun
at·las
| \ ˈat-ləs
\
\
Definition of atlas
1
capitalized
: a Titan who for his part in the Titans' revolt against the gods is forced by Zeus to support the heavens on his shoulders
2
capitalized
: one who bears a heavy burden
3a
: a bound collection of maps often including illustrations, informative tables, or textual matter
b
: a bound collection of tables, charts, or plates
4
: the first vertebra of the neck
5
plural usually atlantes\ ət-ˈlan-(ˌ)tēz
, at-\
: a male figure used like a caryatid as a supporting column or pilaster
, at-\
: a male figure used like a caryatid as a supporting column or pilaster
— called also telamon
Illustration of atlas
atlas 5
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Examples of atlas in a Sentence
a road atlas of the U.S.
Recent Examples on the Web
Using the best available photographs of the moon, Kuiper and his team put together four atlases that were instrumental in planning the moon missions. — Brieanna J. Frank, azcentral, "NASA admin: ASU, UA 'leading the world' in training next generation of space scientists," 17 July 2019 Lance had loaned me a DeLorme road atlas, which divided Colorado into ninety-four pages and offered a close-up of practically every area. — Ted Conover, Harper's magazine, "The Last Frontier," 22 July 2019 Johannes Hevelius’s highly successful Selenography — a lunar atlas published in 1647 and named for Selene, the moon goddess in Greek mythology — is thought to be the first book entirely dedicated to the moon. — Vicki Goldberg, New York Times, "The Moon Sits for Its Portrait," 3 July 2019 But there was definitely something that made the Army Corps of Engineers put that in the atlas. — Erik Lacitis, The Seattle Times, "FBI once tested hair that an Oregon man thought was from Bigfoot, documents reveal," 6 June 2019 Like fireworks, the books on display come in various sizes, from Bate’s paperback-sized guide to large atlases with fold-out illustrations. — John Kelly, Washington Post, "Remembering when emperors planned their own extravagant fireworks displays," 3 July 2019 Cloud atlas Clouds generally form within the troposphere, or the layer of atmosphere closest to the earth. — Catherine Zuckerman, National Geographic, "Clouds, explained," 24 Apr. 2019 An international team of scientists has created the world's first global coral reef atlas. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "New Atlas Captures Conditions of Nearly One-Fourth of World's Coral," 25 Apr. 2019 Stay prepared with a road atlas, like the classic Rand McNally version ($14.95). — Megan Barber, Curbed, "The ultimate van life shopping guide," 14 Nov. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'atlas.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for atlas
atlas
noun
English Language Learners Definition of atlas
: a book of maps
See the full definition for atlas in the English Language Learners Dictionary
atlas
noun
at·las
| \ ˈat-ləs
\
\
Kids Definition of atlas
: a book of maps
atlas
noun
at·las
| \ ˈat-ləs
\
\
Medical Definition of atlas
: the first vertebra of the neck
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