autopilot
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of autopilot
Explanation
Autopilot is a system that controls the course of an airplane or ship. If the captain of a ship is using autopilot, she can take a break from manning the controls herself. When a plane is on autopilot, it's not exactly flying itself, but it's set to maintain a course or altitude while the pilot concentrates on other details of operating the airplane. Autopilot is short for automatic pilot, and the first such system for aircraft was invented in 1912. The nickname came later, in the 1930s. The slang meaning of autopilot is "out of habit," as when a sleep deprived worker goes through his whole day on autopilot.
Vocabulary lists containing autopilot
Florida's B.E.S.T. Roots: auto
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for April 27–May 3, 2024
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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 research, published in Psychology & Health, found that about two thirds of daily behaviors begin automatically, essentially running on "autopilot" because they have become routine.
From Science Daily • Mar. 6, 2026
She advises writing down what's working in your life, what's draining you or no longer fits, and where are you running on autopilot.
From BBC • Dec. 26, 2025
According to Tesla’s marketing materials for autopilot and Full Self-Drive mode, “the system is designed to be able to conduct short and long-distance trips with no action required by the person in the driver’s seat.”
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 17, 2025
Clean and simple autopilot portfolios that hold a handful or two of cheap, market-tracking index funds still dominate the market.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025
He is a man on autopilot, he doesn’t look me in the eye.
From "The Girl on the Train" by Paula Hawkins
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.
