the.com/spaceman
An astronaut without the paperwork, the training, or the oxygen plan.
means A person who travels into or lives in outer space — or, loosely, anyone in a bulky suit who looks like they might.
from A simple compound of 'space' (from Latin 'spatium', meaning extent or expanse) and 'man', stitched together in the early-to-mid 20th century as science fiction needed a quick word for its wandering heroes before 'astronaut' got official. 'Astronaut' itself comes from Greek 'astron' (star) plus 'nautes' (sailor) — a far more dignified title. 'Spaceman' stayed the scrappier, pulpier cousin: the word you'd use on a comic-book cover, not a NASA badge.
- origin
- US slang predates astronaut by decades
- pop culture
- Bowie turned the word into myth
- usage
- implies wonder, not NASA credentials
- vibe
- lonely, drifting, slightly romantic isolation