occultation

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occultation

/ˌɒkəlˈteɪʃ(ə)n/ UK
/ˌɑkəlˈteɪʃ(ə)n/ US

Where it comes from

From Latin occultātiōnem, accusative singular of occultātiō (“concealment; insinuation”), from occultāre, present active infinitive of occultō (“to conceal, hide”); analysable as occult + -ation.

noun occultations · accultation

countable, uncountable An astronomical event that occurs when one celestial object is hidden by another celestial object that passes between it and the observer when the nearer object appears larger and completely hides the more distant object. [T]he diſtance of any place within this kingdom from it, will not much vary the manner of their Appearance in any of the Phænomena, except the Eclipſe of the Sun: for, in the Occultations, the Stars will appeare to paſs nearly under the ſame Angles and Spots of the Moon; […]
Similar: eclipse
countable, uncountable The state of being occult (“hidden, undetected”). If Mr. [Thomas] Campbell's poetry was of a kind that could be forgotten, his long fits of silence would put him fairly in the way of that misfortune. […] [T]he re-appearance of such an author, after those long periods of occultation, is naturally hailed as a novelty—and he receives the double welcom
Similar: hiddenness, invisibility, occultness
Shia, countable, uncountable The disappearance of the Twelfth Imam, or Mahdi, who is believed alive and present in this world, but hidden until his reappearance at the end of time. We are therefore, constantly hoping for the joy and happiness, personified in Imām al-Mahdi, the Imām who is alive at this very time, and who is himself awaiting the command of Allāh to reappear, so that he may strengthen the weak, and judge the oppressors. He will reappear "without having done Bay'

Translations

Every language

noun astronomical event

Español	ocultación
한국어	엄폐 eompye
日本語	掩蔽 enpei
中文	掩星
हिन्दी	ग्रसन grasan
Português	ocultação
Français	occultation
Deutsch	Bedeckung, Okkultation, Verfinsterung
Italiano	occultazione
Ελληνικά	επιπρόσθηση epiprósthisi
Română	ocultație
Русский	покрытие pokrytije
العربية	احْتِجَاب
עברית	הסתרה

noun Mahdi's disappearance in twelver Shiite's doctrine

العربية	الغَيْبَة al-ḡayba

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MLA

"occultation." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/occultation. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

occultation. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/occultation

Chicago

"occultation." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/occultation.

BibTeX

@misc{occultation_2026,
  title = {occultation},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/occultation},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}