aviation
Americannoun
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the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft.
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military aircraft.
noun
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the art or science of flying aircraft
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the design, production, and maintenance of aircraft
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military aircraft collectively
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of aviation
From French, dating back to 1865–70; see origin at avi-, -ation
Explanation
If it has to do with flying or operating a plane, it has to do with aviation. If someone tells you that he's in aviation school, that means he is learning how to fly a plane. Aviation comes from the Latin avis meaning "bird," an appropriate translation given that aviation deals with travel by air, specifically in a plane. The aviation industry is the business sector dedicated to manufacturing and operating all types of aircraft. Air traffic controllers, when they are awake, are concerned with aviation safety.
Vocabulary lists containing aviation
Flying High: Aviation Words
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The Cay
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November Words
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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.
What especially infuriated Colin was the final item on their list: $675,000 for private aviation services.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
Machchhar, who has 17 years of aviation experience -- 11 as a captain -- described the moment he realised the plane was going down while he was lying injured.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
That was the only “private aviation service” the institute had engaged.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
Machchhar said years of aviation experience allowed him to understand what was happening even while he was injured.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
But in the USSR, by 1935 there were about 150 flying clubs that provided aviation tuition to any teenage girl or boy who was a Komsomol member.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
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.
