the U.S. department consisting of practically all military aviation forces, established July 26, 1947.
air force, a similar department in any military organization.
air force, (formerly) the largest unit in the U.S. Army Air Forces.
air force, a unit of U.S. Air Force command between an air division and an air command.
Sometimes air force the military unit of a nation charged with carrying out military operations in the air.
British. Royal Air Force.
the branch of a nation's armed services primarily responsible for air warfare
( as modifier )
an air-force base
a formation in the US and certain other air forces larger than an air division but smaller than an air command
First recorded in 1915–1920
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Yurii Inhat, a spokesman for Ukraine's Air Force, says the main problem remains "the limited number of interceptor missiles available for Ukraine's air defences".
From BBC • May 26, 2026
Air Force Major Gerald Eddie Brown was arrested for allegedly violating arms-control laws by training Chinese military pilots in 2023, a recruitment arranged through Stratos Aviation despite Brown losing his pilot’s license in 2018.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 26, 2026
Three men, including an Air Force veteran, were convicted and sentenced to prison.
From Salon • May 25, 2026
Smith said he packed, so it wasn’t “too dreadful,” but the Air Force veteran did liken the evacuation to a deployment, owing primarily to the uncertainty of how long the evacuation might last.
From Los Angeles Times • May 23, 2026
Stuart Symington, the secretary of the Air Force, articulated Americans' fears in their starkest terms.
From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau
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.
