airfoil

[air-foil]

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noun Aeronautics.

any surface, as a wing, aileron, or stabilizer, designed to aid in lifting or controlling an aircraft by making use of the air currents through which it moves.

Origin of airfoil

First recorded in 1920–25; air¹ + foil²

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for airfoil

pennon, appendage, feather, aileron, pinion, hand, vane, pinna, stabilizer, flipper, dorsal

British Dictionary definitions for airfoil

airfoil

noun

US and Canadian a cross section of an aileron, wing, tailplane, or rotor bladeAlso called: aerofoil

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for airfoil

1922, U.S. form of aerofoil.

airfoil in Science

airfoil

[âr′foil′]

A structure having a shape that provides lift, propulsion, stability, or directional control in a flying object. An aircraft wing provides lift by causing air to pass at a higher speed over the wing than below it, resulting in greater pressure below than above. Propellers are airfoils that are spun rapidly to provide propulsion. See more at Bernoulli effect. See Note at aerodynamics.