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autorotation

American

[aw-toh-roh-tey-shuhn] / ˌɔ toʊ roʊˈteɪ ʃən /

noun

Aeronautics.

the condition of flight occurring when lift is derived solely from the action of air upon the unpowered rotor of a moving helicopter or autogiro.

autorotation British

/ ˌɔːtəʊrəʊˈteɪʃən /

noun

the continuous rotation of a body in an airflow, such as that of the rotor blades of a helicopter in an unpowered descent

"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

autorotational

adjective

Etymology

Origin of autorotation

First recorded in 1915–20; auto- ¹ + rotation

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.

If the supporting beam fails, the station will drift down gently, supported by the autorotation of its blades.

From Time Magazine Archive

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