aloft
Americanadverb
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high up; far above the ground.
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Nautical.
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on the masts; in the rigging; overhead.
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(on a square-rigged sailing ship) in the upper rigging, specifically, on or above the lower yards (opposed to alow).
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in or into the air.
preposition
adverb
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in or into a high or higher place; up above
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nautical in or into the rigging of a vessel
Etymology
Origin of aloft
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English o loft, from Old Norse ā lopt “in the air”; equivalent to a- 1 + loft
Explanation
Something up in the air or really high is aloft. Aloft has a soft, floaty sound to it, and it's a great word for talking about flying birds, airborne ballet dancers, and soaring spitballs. Things that are above or overhead are aloft, and they can be flying free or lifted up. Frisbees are aloft when they cut through the air, and your hands are aloft when you hold them high to catch a Frisbee. Some things are stationary, or set in place, and aloft, like tree houses and birds' nests. You might feel suspended in time as you catch air on your bike, aloft over the ground — until you hit pavement reality three seconds later.
Vocabulary lists containing aloft
A Long Walk to Water
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"Paul Revere's Ride" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
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"The Odyssey," Vocabulary from Part 1 of the epic poem
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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.
They were charged as part of Operation Aloft, launched by Merseyside Police to look into the awarding of commercial and business contracts from the council between 2010 and 2020.
From BBC • Nov. 21, 2025
Fairfield Inn & Suites and Aloft hotels in El Segundo, which are owned by a real estate affiliate of the Blackstone Group, also approved deals with the union.
From Los Angeles Times • May 24, 2024
More Aloft hotels, which are geared toward travelers who enjoy music and a social scene, are set to open this year, including Aloft New York Chelsea and Aloft Indianapolis Downtown.
From New York Times • May 15, 2023
A spokesperson with the Aloft and Element Hotel in Midtown Tampa said tourism likely won’t take too big of a hit this year, at least in the Tampa area.
From Fox News • Mar. 5, 2022
Aloft, floating free beneath the moist, gleaming membrane of bright blue sky, is the rising earth, the only exuberant thing in this part of the cosmos.
From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas
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.
