Apogees

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈæ.pə.d͡ʒiz/

Definitions

1. The points in an orbit that are farthest from the center of mass being orbited
2. The highest points in a figurative sense, representing peak achievements or stages in decline
3. The locations where an object reaches its maximum distance from the focus, often used in astronomical contexts

Etymology: Apogees is simply the plural of apogee, so the story belongs to the singular. The word traces back to Ancient Greek "apógeion", built from "apó", meaning "away", and "gê", meaning "Earth". Its original sense was literal and spatial: the point in an orbit where a body is farthest from the Earth, the same idea astronomers still use for a satellite or the Moon. The Greek term passed into Latin as "apogaeum" or "apogeum" and then into Middle French as "apogée", from which English took the word. Its figurative sense of a high point or peak, the summit of a career or a civilisation, grew out of that orbital meaning, so a word that began as a measurement of distance from the ground now describes the top of anything.