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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One of the Boys
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for July 13–July 19, 2025
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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.
In the separate incident last month, a Russian Su-35 fighter approached a Rivet Joint surveillance aircraft, getting close enough to trigger its emergency systems, disabling its autopilot.
From BBC • May 24, 2026
Far too many songs—“National Treasures,” “Plot Twist”—are Drake on autopilot, rehashing familiar complaints without clever variations.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026
“Instead of eating something on autopilot, you turn it into a small ritual, and over time that awareness starts to shape your everyday choices too,” she explains.
From Salon • May 17, 2026
Employees who put all their work tasks on autopilot using AI tools are also in jeopardy of losing the critical-thinking skills that will make them valued assets in the new era of work.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 11, 2026
Missing settled over the girls like a sudden coat of snow shaken loose from an awning, and they moved forward on autopilot, dazed smiles in place, and stated their names and representative states.
From "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray
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.
