mother ship
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of mother ship
First recorded in 1885–90
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.
Ukraine, which has its own mother ship drones, is trying to regain the edge.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 30, 2025
On Monday, officials detailed communications between the Titan and its mother ship, the Polar Prince.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2024
The Guggenheim’s mother ship interior is such a thrill that it prepares you to love whatever’s on view.
From New York Times ● Apr. 4, 2024
She left the show, starred in a spin-off, then returned to the mother ship a few years later, to the delight of fans.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2023
Over the course of the decade, a series of space missions confirmed that the idea of having a launch vehicle that separated from the mother ship would, in fact, work.
From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson
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.
