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  • jet
    jet
    noun
    a stream of a liquid, gas, or small solid particles forcefully shooting forth from a nozzle, orifice, etc.
  • JET
    JET
    acronym
    Joint European Torus; a tokamak plasma-containment device at Culham, Oxfordshire, for research into energy production by nuclear fusion
Synonyms

jet

1 American  
[jet] / dʒɛt /

noun

  1. a stream of a liquid, gas, or small solid particles forcefully shooting forth from a nozzle, orifice, etc.

  2. something that issues in such a stream, as water or gas.

  3. a spout or nozzle for emitting liquid or gas.

    a gas jet.

  4. jet plane.

  5. jet engine.


verb (used without object)

  • jets,
    present (3rd person singular)
  • jetted,
    past participle,  past
  • jetting
    present participle
  1. to travel by jet plane.

    to jet to Las Vegas for the weekend.

  2. to move or travel by means of jet propulsion.

    The octopus jetted away from danger.

  3. to be shot forth in a stream.

  4. to move or travel rapidly.

    The star halfback jetted toward the goal line.

verb (used with object)

  • jets,
    present (3rd person singular)
  • jetted,
    past participle,  past
  • jetting
    present participle
  1. to transport by jet plane.

    The nonstop service from New York will jet you to Tokyo in 13 hours.

  2. to shoot (something) forth in a stream; spout.

  3. to place (a pile or the like) by eroding the ground beneath it with a jet of water or of water and compressed air.

adjective

  1. of, relating to, or associated with a jet, jet engine, or jet plane.

    jet pilot; jet exhaust.

  2. in the form of or producing a jet or jet propulsion.

    jet nozzle.

  3. by means of a jet plane.

    a jet trip; jet transportation.

jet 2 American  
[jet] / dʒɛt /

noun

  1. a compact black coal, susceptible of a high polish, used for making beads, jewelry, buttons, etc.

  2. a deep black.

  3. Obsolete. black marble.


adjective

  1. consisting or made of jet.

  2. of the color jet; black as jet.

jet 1 British  
/ dʒɛt /

noun

  1. a thin stream of liquid or gas forced out of a small aperture or nozzle

  2. an outlet or nozzle for emitting such a stream

  3. a jet-propelled aircraft

  4. astronomy a long thin feature extending from an active galaxy and usually observed at radio wavelengths

"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

verb

  1. to issue or cause to issue in a jet

    water jetted from the hose

    he jetted them with water

  2. to transport or be transported by jet aircraft

"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
jet 2 British  
/ dʒɛt /

noun

    1. a hard black variety of coal that takes a brilliant polish and is used for jewellery, ornaments, etc

    2. ( as modifier )

      jet earrings

"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

JET 3 British  
/ dʒɛt /

acronym

  1. Joint European Torus; a tokamak plasma-containment device at Culham, Oxfordshire, for research into energy production by nuclear fusion

"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

jet Scientific  
/ jĕt /
  1. A rapid stream of liquid or gas forced through a small opening or nozzle under pressure.

  2. An aircraft or other vehicle propelled by one or more jet engines.

  3. A jet engine.


Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future


Etymology

Origin of jet1

First recorded in 1660–70; 1940–45 jet 1 for def. 4; from Middle French jeter “to throw,” from unrecorded Vulgar Latin jectāre, from Latin jactus, past participle of jacere “to throw”

Origin of jet2

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English jet(e), get(e), from Old French jaiet, gaiet, from Latin gagātēs, from Greek (líthos) gagā́tēs “Gagatic (stone),” named after Gágai, town in Lycia


Explanation

A jet is an airplane that can rapidly travel long distances. To jet is the act of getting somewhere quickly, by jet or any other way, as in, "Do you see what time it is? We better jet!" A jet is an aircraft that gets its power from jet engines rather than propellers. Jets are fast — that's probably why as a verb, jet means "to move quickly," either by taking a jet, like the celebrities who jet around the world, or the more ordinary "if I don't jet, I'll be late for school." Dishwashers and certain kinds of tubs have jets, tiny openings that push water out with great force. The streams of water are also called, you guessed it, jets.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing jet

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.

See Examples For:

The jet stream is largely responsible for developing and delivering our stormier pressure systems.

From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026

A change in the position of that jet stream and its strength is expected through the coming week.

From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026

A big hurdle is getting enough jet engines, said Eveline Buchatskiy, managing partner of D3, one of Ukraine’s largest defense investors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

What makes the finding especially significant is that the same 2% threshold has already been linked to jet formation in much smaller black holes within our own Milky Way galaxy.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026

If a candidate does not have the professional experience listed above, he or she must have at least 1,000 pilot-in-command hours in a jet aircraft.

From "Women in Space" by Karen Bush Gibson

Last month, the 40-year-old JET started its final run of experiments before it is switched off for good at the end of the year.

From Science Magazine ● Sep. 7, 2023

Under the terms of JET, the country could, in theory, achieve "net zero" carbon emissions by 2050, offering a blueprint for other developing nations looking to go green.

From BBC ● May 23, 2023

In February, European scientists at the UK-based JET laboratory smashed their own world record for the amount of energy produced over five seconds.

From BBC ● Dec. 13, 2022

The acquisition gives JET a foothold in the U.S. market, but the newly merged company is already facing pressure to sell off Grubhub as JET’s stock continues to tumble on the Amsterdam stock exchange.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 24, 2022

JET Two proper palfreys, black as jet, To hale thy vengeful waggon swift away.

From Shakespeare and Precious Stones Treating of the Known References of Precious Stones in Shakespeare's Works, with Comments as to the Origin of His Material, the Knowledge of the Poet Concerning Precious Stones, and References as to Where the Precious Stones of His Time Came from by George Frederick Kunz

The Daily Telegraph leads with reports that RAF jets had two close encounters with unidentified drones earlier this year while they were completing training exercises over the North Sea.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

Some matter can instead be expelled into space through powerful jets and other outflows.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026

Taiwanese fighter jets and two Chinook helicopters carrying giant Taiwan flags flew over the capital ahead of Lai's wide-ranging speech, which also covered housing pressure and the declining population.

From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2026

Noem was summoned before Congress over those scandals and others, including her alleged misuse of government funds on television advertisements and private luxury jets.

From Salon ● Oct. 9, 2026

As such, he’s able to slip into the Winnebago bathroom as soon as he hears G’ma say, “Yes, Jimmy, we’re fine. Cool your jets, will ya?”

From "Clean Getaway" by Nic Stone

He jetted around to receive a lateral, just as he had done for Aurich on so many Fridays.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

As they jetted away from San Francisco International Airport later that night, he said, “I guess I’m not a Beatle anymore.”

From Salon ● Jun. 26, 2026

They’d jetted in on separate planes, lest one go down.

From Slate ● Jan. 13, 2026

US President Donald Trump jetted to Malaysia in October to oversee the signing of a follow-on declaration between Thailand and Cambodia, touting new trade deals after the neighbours agreed to prolong their truce.

From Barron's ● Dec. 31, 2025

Instantly, a white sheet of wind jetted out of the thermos and propelled us sideways, turning our downward plummet into a forty-five-degree crash landing.

From "The Sea of Monsters" by Rick Riordan

Once again Rutte stepped in -- jetting to Washington to see Trump.

From Barron's ● Jul. 6, 2026

Had he made that announcement a few hours earlier, maybe Congress could have passed some sort of brief extension before jetting off.

From Slate ● Jun. 13, 2026

Instead of jetting of for an Italian ski trip with his wife, Stephens-Manassiev found himself alone and under fire.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 4, 2026

At LAX on Thursday, the terminals that house Delta and American airlines were bustling as usual, with travelers grateful to be jetting off before the reductions hit.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 7, 2025

So while I thought Mom was jetting between the Maldives and Bermuda, Camille thought she was hiding in Fiji.

From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller

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