airplane
Americannoun
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airplanes
plural
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a heavier-than-air aircraft kept aloft by the upward thrust exerted by the passing air on its fixed wings and driven by propellers, jet propulsion, etc.
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any similar heavier-than-air aircraft, as a glider or helicopter.
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of airplane
1870–75, for an earlier sense; alteration of aeroplane, with air 1 replacing aero-
Compare meaning
How does airplane compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
An airplane is a flying vehicle that has fixed wings and engines or propellers that thrust it forward through the air. It's most common when you travel long distances to take an airplane. An airplane is the form of transportation you'll probably choose when you need to go from New York to California — it's the fastest and safest way to get there. Commercial airplanes are flown by a pilot and staffed by a crew. In Britain, it's still called an aeroplane, from the Greek aero-, "air," and French planer, "to soar," by way of the French aéroplane.
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.
See Examples For:
"Our team stayed focused on completing all requirements and delivering a safe and more capable airplane to our customers."
From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026
Companies pay search engines like Google to appear in the search results for everything from airplane tickets to skincare.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 30, 2026
Sales outpace Wall Street expectations as defense business comes through while commercial airplane sales miss mark.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Mike Bremner took off in a Piper PA-28 Cherokee airplane from Orange County’s John Wayne Airport just before 2 p.m.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
Dahlia flew on an airplane, which is how I know how bad this all must be.
From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy
Boeing is introducing changes to the manufacturing process that addresses the root cause of the unsafe condition on in-production airplanes, the FAA said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
The gap in the market is a consequence of designing airplanes around a cylindrical cabin and having to choose between a bigger- or a smaller-diameter tube, O’Leary said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
The total company backlog, which rose to a record $715 billion, included over 6,200 commercial airplanes.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
Helicopters are significantly more likely to be damaged by bird strikes than airplanes, and are also more likely to lead to injuries to crew or passengers, according to evidence previously cited by the NTSB.
From Barron's ● Jul. 16, 2026
Others say there is a supernatural force inside Mount Banahaw that pulls airplanes and helicopters down from the sky.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
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.
