The English word “planet” comes from the ancient Greek word πλανήτης (planētēs), which literally means “wanderer.”

In Greek astronomy, the planets were called “wandering stars” (Greek: πλανῆται ἀστέρες, planētai asteres) because, unlike the fixed stars that kept the same patterns, these bright points of light appeared to wander across the night sky over days and weeks. The verb behind the noun is πλανᾶσθαι (planasthai), meaning “to wander” or “to stray.”