aircraft
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of aircraft
Compare meaning
How does aircraft compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A machine that can fly, held aloft in the air, is called an aircraft. Airplanes and helicopters are two types of aircraft. Some aircraft, such as helicopters, fly by using rotary wings — spinning blades that directly generate lift. Airplanes use engines to turn propellers or power gas turbines, providing the thrust needed to move air over their wings and create lift. Still other aircraft, including hot-air balloons, achieve lift through buoyancy, by using gases that are lighter than the surrounding air. Balloons and airships, including blimps and dirigibles, were actually the first vehicles referred to as aircraft, a term adapted from nautical terminology.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The Apache helicopter is the second crewed aircraft that Washington has confirmed was shot down by Iran during the war, following the loss of an F-15 fighter plane in April.
From Barron's • Jun. 10, 2026
Government data showed that exports of capital goods like computers and civilian aircraft also climbed.
From Barron's • Jun. 9, 2026
"We see pairs of aircraft now, before it would be a single fixed wing."
From BBC • Jun. 9, 2026
Meanwhile, exports of aircraft rose by $1 billion versus March.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 9, 2026
By the middle of 1942, the Air Transport Auxiliary in the United Kingdom let women ferry every single type of aircraft that the men of the Royal Air Force flew.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
