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aviation

[ey-vee-ey-shuh n, av-ee-]
See more synonyms for aviation on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft.
  2. military aircraft.
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Origin of aviation

From French, dating back to 1865–70; see origin at avi-, -ation
Related formsa·vi·at·ic [ey-vee-at-ik, av-ee-] /ˌeɪ viˈæt ɪk, ˌæv i-/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for aviation

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • This proposition is one of keen interest in connection with aviation.

    Flying Machines

    W.J. Jackman and Thos. H. Russell

  • Work upon the aviation camp at East Harniss had actually begun.

    Shavings

    Joseph C. Lincoln

  • Can't you take me to the aviation place sometime, Uncle Jed?

    Shavings

    Joseph C. Lincoln

  • Only in his field of aviation medicine did he feel competent, secure.

  • In the evening we were invited to the aviation camp in the suburbs of Paris.

British Dictionary definitions for aviation

aviation

noun
    1. the art or science of flying aircraft
    2. the design, production, and maintenance of aircraft
  2. US military aircraft collectively
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Word Origin

C19: from French, from Latin avis bird
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

Word Origin and History for aviation

n.

1866, from French aviation, noun of action from stem of Latin avis "bird" (see aviary). Coined 1863 by French aviation pioneer Guillaume Joseph Gabriel de La Landelle (1812-1886) in "Aviation ou Navigation aérienne."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper