airliner
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of airliner
Explanation
If you've ever taken a trip that began or ended at an airport, then chances are that your journey included flying on an airliner — a big, commercial airplane that transports passengers across cities, countries, and continents. An airliner plays a crucial role in connecting people and places, making travel over long distances accessible and convenient. A nonstop trip from New York to Hawaii — a distance of more than 5,000 miles — can be made in about 12 hours on an airliner. Early airliners had spacious seats and legroom, along with amenities like piano lounges. Most of today's airliners have fewer amenities and more seats for paying passengers. Smaller airliners carry about 100–135 passengers, while larger airliners can carry up to about 850 passengers!
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 Lockerbie bombing came five months after 290 people were killed when an Iranian commercial airliner was shot down by a US battleship.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
Qatar's royal family donated the luxury airliner last year after Trump complained about the state of the two aging Boeing 747 jets that had served as Air Force One since 1990.
From Barron's ● Jul. 10, 2026
Affectionately known as Kosmo, it's a towering black box that resembles a cross between a telephone exchange and the flight deck of an airliner.
From BBC ● Mar. 6, 2026
Budget airliner Wizz Air might be the most exposed to conflict in the region, as it has significant direct exposure to Israel, Citibank’s Conor Dwyer wrote in a note.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 2, 2026
A single blade was as long as the wings of an airliner.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
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.
