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empennage

American  
[ahm-puh-nahzh, em-, ahn-pe-nazh] / ˌɑm pəˈnɑʒ, ˌɛm-, ɑ̃ pɛˈnaʒ /

noun

plural

empennages

  1. the rear part of an airplane or airship, usually comprising the stabilizer, elevator, vertical fin, and rudder.

empennage British  
/ ɑ̃pɛnaʒ, ɛmˈpɛnɪdʒ /

noun

  1. the rear part of an aircraft, comprising the fin, rudder, and tailplane

"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

Etymology

Origin of empennage

1905–10; < French: literally, feathering, equivalent to empenn ( er ) to feather an arrow ( em- em- 1 + -penner, derivative of penne feather; pen 1 ) + -age -age

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.

His idea embodied 'everything'—the wings forming an oblique sail, the empennage, the spindle forms to diminish resistance, the screw-propeller, the 'explosion' motor,... he even described a means of securing automatic stability.

From The Mastery of the Air by Claxton, William J.

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.