taikonaut

tai·ko·naut
T1A1I1K5O1N1A1U1T1
/ˈtaɪkəˌnɔːt/

noun

A person who travels in space for the Chinese space program; a Chinese astronaut.

First used 1998.Scrabble 13
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Meanings

nountaikonaut (plural taikonauts)

plural taikonauts

  1. A person who travels in space for the Chinese space program; a Chinese astronaut.First known use 1998.

    The past decade has seen remarkable events and changes: […] The Columbia disaster and a Chinese taikonaut in orbit

    2003, Peter Schwartz, Inevitable Surprises, page x

Origin

From Mandarin 太空 (tàikōng, “space”) + -naut, modelled after astronaut, cosmonaut, spationaut, etc. The term was coined on 19 May 1998 by Chiew Lee Yih (趙里昱 (Zhào Lǐyù)) from Malaysia, who used it first in newsgroups. Almost simultaneously, Chen Lan coined it for use in the Western media.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic تَايْكُونَات
  • تَايْكُونَات (tāykonāt)Chinese astronaut
Basque taikonauta
  • taikonautaChinese astronaut
Catalan taikonauta
  • taikonautaChinese astronaut
Chinese Cantonese 太空人
  • 太空人 (taai³ hung¹ jan⁴)Chinese astronaut
Chinese Mandarin 太空人, 宇航員 /宇航员
  • 太空人 (tàikōng rén)Chinese astronaut
  • 宇航員 /宇航员 (yǔháng yuán)Chinese astronaut
  • 航天員 /航天员 (hángtiān yuán)Chinese astronaut
  • 宇宙航行員 /宇宙航行员 (yǔzhòu hángxíng yuán)Chinese astronaut
  • 太空飛行員 /太空飞行员 (tàikōng fēixíngyuán)Chinese astronaut
Czech tchajkonaut
  • tchajkonautChinese astronaut
Dutch taikonaut, taikonaute
  • taikonautChinese astronaut
  • taikonauteChinese astronaut
Esperanto tajkonaŭto
  • tajkonaŭtoChinese astronaut
Finnish taikonautti
  • taikonauttiChinese astronaut
French taïkonaute
  • taïkonauteChinese astronaut
German Taikonaut, Taikonautin
  • TaikonautChinese astronaut
  • TaikonautinChinese astronaut
Greek ταϊκοναύτης
  • ταϊκοναύτης (taïkonáftis)Chinese astronaut
Hungarian tajkonauta
  • tajkonautaChinese astronaut
Japanese タイコノート
  • タイコノート (taikonōto)Chinese astronaut
Korean 타이코놋
  • 타이코놋 (taikonot)Chinese astronaut
Polish tajkonauta, tajkonautka
  • tajkonautaChinese astronaut
  • tajkonautkaChinese astronaut
Portuguese taikonauta
  • taikonautaChinese astronaut
Romanian taikonaut
  • taikonautChinese astronaut
Russian тайкона́вт
  • тайкона́вт (tajkonávt)Chinese astronaut
Spanish taikonauta
  • taikonautaChinese astronaut
Swedish taikonaut
  • taikonautChinese astronaut
Turkish taykonot
  • taykonotChinese astronaut
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

“taikonaut.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/taikonaut. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “taikonaut,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/taikonaut.

Source: taikonaut on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.