lighter-than-air
adjective
(of an aircraft) weighing less than the air it displaces, hence obtaining lift from aerostatic buoyancy.
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lighter-than-air
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lighter than air
lighter than airadjectivehaving a lower density than that of air
lighter-than-air
American
[lahy-ter-thuhn-air]
/ ˈlaɪ tər ðənˈɛər /
adjective
Aeronautics.
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(of an aircraft) weighing less than the air it displaces, hence obtaining lift from aerostatic buoyancy.
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of or relating to lighter-than-air craft.
lighter than air
British
adjective
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having a lower density than that of air
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of or relating to an aircraft, such as a balloon or airship, that depends on buoyancy for support in the air
Etymology
Origin of lighter-than-air
First recorded in 1900–05
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:
In a debut, Mr. Miyake gave a more silken and nuanced portrayal, shaping his lighter-than-air moments of elevation with turns to give his character an ardent and flourished sweep.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026
For one thing, the ship gets its lift from helium – a lighter-than-air gas that does not burn.
From NewsForKids.net ● Dec. 7, 2023
Boland — who had over 11,000 hours piloting balloons — was a forerunner of experimental lighter-than-air balloon building.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 2, 2021
One of least known films in the festival, 1933’s “My Lips Betray,” is a lighter-than-air piece of fluff that starts the weekend off.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 12, 2019
It is now known that all these accidents could have been avoided, in view of the progress that has been made in the science of lighter-than-air.
From Zeppelin The Story of a Great Achievement by Harry Vissering
Yet here Dylan reached back to before that epochal shift with loving covers of late-’50s classics like Chuck Berry’s “Little Queenie” and the Fleetwoods’ “Mr. Blue,” the latter of which felt lighter than air.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 1, 2024
Airships Unlike planes, airships fly because they are full of gas that is lighter than air.
From NewsForKids.net ● Dec. 7, 2023
In addition to being lighter than air, helium is staunchly unreactive, making it useful for manufacturing sensitive products such as computer chips.
From Science Magazine ● Nov. 5, 2023
Canadian Armed Forces Major-General Paul Prévost said all three of the most recent objects to be shot down appeared to be "lighter than air" machines, and described the Lake Huron object as "a suspected balloon".
From BBC ● Feb. 13, 2023
And because they were polite, Bernard felt positively gigantic—gigantic and at the same time light with elation, lighter than air.
From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
