airman

American

[air-muhn] / ˈɛər mən /

noun

plural

airmen

an aviator.
U.S. Air Force. an enlisted person of one of the three lowest ranks airmanbasic, airman, airmanfirstclass. Amn
a member of a military aircrew.
(in other countries) an enlisted person in the air force.

airman British

/ ˈɛəmən /

noun

an aviator, esp a man who serves in his country's air force

"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

Other Word Forms

airwoman noun

Etymology

Origin of airman

1870–75, for an earlier sense; air ¹ + -man, on the model of seaman

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.

Video footage of a captured U.S. airman in enemy hands would have handed Tehran a major propaganda tool and a source of leverage at a critical moment in the war.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 5, 2026

The CIA also ran a deception campaign, according to reports, spreading word inside Iran that US forces had already found the second airman.

From BBC • Apr. 5, 2026

The airman was wounded after his ejection but could still walk, according to news outlet Axios, which cited a US official.

From Barron's • Apr. 5, 2026

Americans awoke on Easter Sunday to the brilliant news that a second American airman had been rescued from Iranian territory after a crash last week.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 5, 2026

“You think their captured English airman might be Verity?”

From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023