equatorial
adjective
equa·to·ri·al
ˌē-kwə-ˈtȯr-ē-əl 
ˌe-kwə-
1
a
: of, relating to, or located at the equator or an equator
also
: being in the plane of the equator
a satellite in equatorial orbit
b
: of, originating in, or suggesting the region around the geographic equator
2
a
: being or having a support that includes two axles at right angles to each other with one parallel to the earth's axis of rotation
an equatorial telescope mount
b
: extending in a direction essentially in the plane of a cyclic structure (as of cyclohexane)
equatorial hydrogens
compare axial
Examples of equatorial in a Sentence
a lush equatorial rain forest that is threatened by rampant development
Recent Examples on the Web
Most of the world’s coffee is grown in an equatorial region that spans Latin America, the Asia-Pacific region and Africa known as the Coffee Belt.
—
Amelia Lucas, CNBC, 7 Apr. 2025
El Niño is the warmer half of the cycle, an alternating pattern of contrasting climate shifts defined by sea surface temperatures and precipitation in a block of the equatorial Pacific that depart from the neutral norm.
—Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 3 Apr. 2025
In woodlands much like this one in prehistoric Myanmar, from equatorial forests to those that survive through the long dormancy of polar nights, pieces of Cretaceous life are becoming encased in resin.
—Riley Black, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Feb. 2025
Unlike other planets that have a more or less circular, equatorial orbit around the sun, Pluto’s is sharply inclined and highly elliptical, with a perihelion, or close approach to the sun, of roughly 2.7 billion miles, and an apehelion, or furthest remove from the sun, of 4.67 billion miles.
—Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 18 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for equatorial
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Amelia Lucas, CNBC, 7 Apr. 2025
El Niño is the warmer half of the cycle, an alternating pattern of contrasting climate shifts defined by sea surface temperatures and precipitation in a block of the equatorial Pacific that depart from the neutral norm.
—Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 3 Apr. 2025
In woodlands much like this one in prehistoric Myanmar, from equatorial forests to those that survive through the long dormancy of polar nights, pieces of Cretaceous life are becoming encased in resin.
—Riley Black, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Feb. 2025
Unlike other planets that have a more or less circular, equatorial orbit around the sun, Pluto’s is sharply inclined and highly elliptical, with a perihelion, or close approach to the sun, of roughly 2.7 billion miles, and an apehelion, or furthest remove from the sun, of 4.67 billion miles.
—Jeffrey Kluger, TIME, 18 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for equatorial
Cite this Entry
“Equatorial.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/equatorial. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
equatorial
adjective
equa·to·ri·al
ˌē-kwə-ˈtōr-ē-əl
ˌek-wə-,
-ˈtȯr-
1
: of, relating to, or located at the equator
2
: of, originating in, or suggesting the region around the equator
equatorial heat
Medical Definition
equatorial
adjective
equa·to·ri·al
ˌē-kwə-ˈtōr-ē-əl
ˌek-wə-
ˌek-wə-
-ˈtȯr-
1
: of, located at, or relating to an equator
equatorial diameter
2
: extending in a direction essentially in the plane of a cyclic structure (as of cyclohexane)
equatorial hydrogen atoms
compare axial sense 2b
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