monoplane

[ mon-uh-pleyn ]

/ ˈmɒn əˌpleɪn /

noun

an airplane with one main sustaining surface or one set of wings.

Nautical. a planing craft the bottom of which is in an unbroken fore-and-aft line.

Nearby words

monophyletic, monophyllous, monophysite, monophysitic, monophysitism, monoplane, monoplegia, monoplegic, monoploid, monopod, monopode

Origin of monoplane

First recorded in 1905–10; mono- + plane¹

Related formsmon·o·plan·ist, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for monoplane

So he skirted the fence and the hedge at the side, and went around three sides of the field to reach the monoplane.
The Boy Scouts on the Trail|George Durston
A rod, connecting a warping lever with the right wing of the monoplane, snapped with a sharp crack.
The Girl Aviators and the Phantom Airship|Margaret Burnham
Very business-like the young people looked as they hauled the monoplane up the hill.
The Girl Aviators and the Phantom Airship|Margaret Burnham
All then go to the training camp about 80% for monoplane work, the remainder for biplanes.
Jane's All the World's Aircraft|Various

But just before that, the monoplane was poised in the air for an instant above the great falling shape.
Secret History Revealed By Lady Peggy O'Malley|C. N. Williamson and A. M. Williamson

British Dictionary definitions for monoplane

monoplane

/ (ˈmɒnəʊˌpleɪn) /

noun

an aeroplane with only one pair of wingsCompare biplane

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

Word Origin and History for monoplane

monoplane

1907, a hybrid coined from mono- + second element of aeroplane. In old planes the wings formed a single surface running across the fuselage.