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• hang glider
  hang glider

  noun

  a kitelike glider consisting of a V -shaped wing underneath which the pilot is strapped: kept aloft by updrafts and guided by the pilot's shifting body weight.
• hang-glider
  hang-glider

  noun

  an unpowered aircraft consisting of a large cloth wing stretched over a light framework from which the pilot hangs in a harness, using a horizontal bar to control the flight

hang glider

American  

noun

hang gliders plural

1. a kitelike glider consisting of a V -shaped wing underneath which the pilot is strapped: kept aloft by updrafts and guided by the pilot's shifting body weight.

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hang-glider British  

noun

1. an unpowered aircraft consisting of a large cloth wing stretched over a light framework from which the pilot hangs in a harness, using a horizontal bar to control the flight

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• hang-gliding
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• hang gliders
  plural

Etymology

Origin of hang glider

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

A hang glider for four decades, 69-year-old Arthur Simoneau was a calculated risk-taker.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 12, 2025

They described him as a tinkerer who taught himself how to use a hang glider, and did not believe he was breaking the law by possessing the Hawk Innovative Tech devices.

From Washington Post • Apr. 13, 2023

A duo of Cuban migrants were apprehended at Key West International Airport in Florida Saturday after flying there on a motorized hang glider.

From Washington Times • Mar. 25, 2023

From out of nowhere, a motorized hang glider whizzed above the crowd while Carn decorated a saucy, conga-rapping number with a chiming solo, with Younge orchestrating the dozen or so players on stage.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 28, 2022

Even Ron would tell anyone who’d listen about the time he’d almost hit a hang glider on Charlie’s old broom.

From "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J.K. Rowling