Ursa Minor

US/ˌɝsə ˈmaɪnɚ/

proper noun

A circumpolar constellation of the northern sky, said to resemble a bear. It includes the familiar asterism of the Little Dipper and, as part of it, the northern pole star Polaris, as well as Kochab.

Similar
Little BearLesser Bear
OriginLatin Ursa minor →
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Meanings

proper noun
  1. astronomyA circumpolar constellation of the northern sky, said to resemble a bear. It includes the familiar asterism of the Little Dipper and, as part of it, the northern pole star Polaris, as well as Kochab.

    Synonyms: Little Bear, Lesser Bear

Synonyms & antonyms

proper nounA circumpolar constellation of the northern sky, said to resemble a bear. It includes the familiar asterism of the Little Dipper and, as part of it, the northern pole star Polaris, as well as Kochab.

Similar
Little BearLesser Bear
Also see
little bear

Origin

  1. LatinUrsa minor
  2. LatinUrsa minor
  3. EnglishUrsa Minor

Borrowed from Latin Ursa minor (“(the) lesser bear”).

More words from Latin

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Ancient Greek Ἄρκτος Μικρά
  • Ἄρκτος Μικρά (Árktos Mikrá)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Arabic بَنَاتُ نَعْشٍ الصُّغْرَى, الدُّب الْأَصْغَر
  • بَنَاتُ نَعْشٍ الصُّغْرَى (banātu naʕšin aṣ-ṣuḡrā)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
  • الدُّب الْأَصْغَر (ad-dub al-ʔaṣḡar)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Bulgarian Ма́лка ме́чка
  • Ма́лка ме́чка (Málka méčka)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Chinese Mandarin 小熊座
  • 小熊座 (Xiǎoxióngzuò)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Czech Malý medvěd
  • Malý medvěda circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Danish Lille Bjørn
  • Lille Bjørna circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Dutch Kleine Beer
  • Kleine Beera circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Esperanto Malgranda Urso
  • Malgranda Ursoa circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Estonian Väike Vanker
  • Väike Vankera circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Finnish Pieni karhu
  • Pieni karhua circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
French Petite Ourse
  • Petite Oursea circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
German kleiner Bär, Kleiner Bär
  • kleiner Bära circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
  • Kleiner Bära circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
  • kleiner Wagena circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Greek Μικρή Άρκτος
  • Μικρή Άρκτος (Mikrí Árktos)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Hindi ध्रुवमत्स्य तारामंडल
  • ध्रुवमत्स्य तारामंडल (dhruvmatsya tārāmaṇḍal)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Irish an Béar Beag
  • an Béar Beaga circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Italian Orsa minore
  • Orsa minorea circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Japanese 小熊座
  • 小熊座 (Kogumaza)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Korean 작은곰자리
  • 작은곰자리 (Jageun'gomjari)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Latin Ursa minor
  • Ursa minora circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Latvian Mazais Lācis
  • Mazais Lācisa circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Malay Beruang Kecil
  • Beruang Kecila circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Norwegian Bokmål Lille bjørn
  • Lille bjørna circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Persian خرس کوچک, دب اصغر
  • خرس کوچک (xers-e kučak)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
  • دب اصغر (dobb-e asġar)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Polish Mała Niedźwiedzica
  • Mała Niedźwiedzicaa circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Portuguese Ursa Menor
  • Ursa Menora circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Romanian Ursa Mică
  • Ursa Micăa circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Russian Ма́лая Медве́дица
  • Ма́лая Медве́дица (Málaja Medvédica)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Scottish Gaelic An Dreagbhod
  • An Dreagbhoda circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Slovak Malý medveď
  • Malý medveďa circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Spanish Osa Menor
  • Osa Menora circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Swedish Lilla Björn
  • Lilla Björna circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Tagalog Osa Menor
  • Osa Menora circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Thai กลุ่มดาวหมีเล็ก
  • กลุ่มดาวหมีเล็ก (glùm-daao-mǐi-lék)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Turkish Küçük Ayı
  • Küçük Ayıa circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Ukrainian Мала́ Ведме́диця
  • Мала́ Ведме́диця (Malá Vedmédycja)a circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Vietnamese Tiểu Hùng
  • Tiểu Hùnga circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Welsh yr Arth Fach
  • yr Arth Facha circumpolar constellation of the northern sky
Cite this entry
APA

Ursa Minor. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Ursa%20Minor

MLA

“Ursa Minor.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Ursa%20Minor. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Ursa Minor,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Ursa%20Minor.

Source: Ursa Minor on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.