Cepheid variable

or cepheid variable

noun Astronomy.

a variable star in which changes in brightness are due to alternate contractions and expansions in volume.

Origin of Cepheid variable

First recorded in 1900–05; Cephe(us) + -id1

British Dictionary definitions for cepheid variable

Cepheid variable
/ (ˈsiːfɪɪd) /

noun

astronomy any of a class of variable stars with regular cycles of variations in luminosity (most ranging from three to fifty days). There is a relationship between the periods of variation and the absolute magnitudes, which is used for measuring the distance of such stars