aerial

[ adjective air-ee-uhl, ey-eer-ee-uhl; noun air-ee-uhl ]

adjective

1. of, in, or produced by the air:

   aerial currents.

2. inhabiting or frequenting the air:

   aerial creatures.

3. operating on a track or cable elevated above the ground:

   an aerial ski lift up the mountainside.

4. reaching far into the air; high; lofty:

   aerial spires.

5. partaking of the nature of air; airy.
6. unsubstantial; visionary:

   aerial fancies.

7. having a light and graceful beauty; ethereal:

   aerial music.

8. Biology. growing in the air, as the adventitious roots of some trees.
9. pertaining to or used for, against, or in aircraft.
10. supplied or performed by means of aircraft:

    aerial support; aerial reconnaissance.

noun

1. a radio or television antenna.
2. Football. forward pass.

aerial

/ ˈɛərɪəl /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or resembling air
2. existing, occurring, moving, or operating in the air

   aerial roots of a plant

   aerial cable car

3. ethereal; light and delicate
4. imaginary; visionary
5. extending high into the air; lofty
6. of or relating to aircraft

   aerial combat

noun

1. Also calledantenna the part of a radio or television system having any of various shapes, such as a dipole, Yagi, long-wire, or vertical aerial, by means of which radio waves are transmitted or received

Other Words From

• aeri·al·ly adverb
• aeri·al·ness noun
• super·aeri·al adjective
• super·aeri·al·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of aerial¹

1595–1605; 1900–05 aerial fordef 11; < Latin āeri ( us ) of the air (< Greek āérios, equivalent to āer- (stem of āḗr air ¹ ) + -ios adj. suffix) + -al ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of aerial¹

C17: via Latin from Greek aērios, from aēr air

Example Sentences

There’s also a comparatively-more-complicated basketball mode, which tests players’ aerial skills with massive hoops that hover over the pitch.

From Washington Post

After she’d had her fill, she gamboled about with abandon, diving into fallen leaves, rolling in sideways somersaults, and doing impressive aerial flips.

From Washington Post

Relying on leaked architectural plans, the testimony of former project insiders, and drone aerial footage, Navalny narrates how Putin has built himself the world’s biggest private residence on an estate 39 times the size of Monaco.

From Time

The Pentagon spent hundreds of billions of dollars on sophisticated surveillance platforms, aerial drones and biometric tracking and still couldn’t effectively find enough Taliban fighters to hinder the group’s progress.

From Washington Post

The single seat eVTOL, which was showcased alongside an autonomous vehicle during GM’s keynote presentation at the virtual 2021 CES tech trade show, is the automaker’s first foray into aerial mobility.

From TechCrunch

What the people of Mosul now fear most is aerial bombardment of their own city.

From The Daily Beast

An aerial image shows what appears to be a spa, roiling water apparently carrying no nasty connotations.

From The Daily Beast

The crime-fighting penguins, says the trailer, are “masters of the skies, espionage, and aerial assault.”

From The Daily Beast

And even that aerial effort is being shortchanged, military insiders tell The Daily Beast.

From The Daily Beast

This one, for instance, opens with aerial video of Kobani shot from an “Islamic State drone.”

From The Daily Beast

She was scared to death that the lightning would strike the house because of the radio aerial.

From Project Gutenberg

You mentioned a lodging near your aerial castle (my sole object at Bath), and I shall be glad if you will secure it for that time.

From Project Gutenberg

A kind of summer palace illuminated by the rays of the rising Sun opened beneath our aerial gondola.

From Project Gutenberg

We have never had either steam or railways, because we have always known of electricity, and aerial navigation is natural to us.

From Project Gutenberg

I leaned back in the embrasure in a more comfortable position, so that I could enjoy more fully the aerial gambolling.

From Project Gutenberg