helicopter
Americannoun
verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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helicoptersimple
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helicopterssimple
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have helicopteredperfect
-
has helicopteredperfect
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am helicopteringprogressive
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are helicopteringprogressive
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is helicopteringprogressive
-
have been helicopteringperfect progressive
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has been helicopteringperfect progressive
Past
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helicopteredsimple
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had helicopteredperfect
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was helicopteringprogressive
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were helicopteringprogressive
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had been helicopteringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of helicopter
From the French word hélicoptère, dating back to 1885–90. See helico-, -pter
Explanation
A helicopter is a flying vehicle with a system of rotors that lift and propel it. In some cities, police officers patrol in helicopters. In some suburbs, wealthy people even commute by helicopter. Like airplanes, helicopters travel through the air — but unlike airplanes, they don't have wings. Most helicopters have a large rotor blade on top that creates lift by spinning rapidly. Smaller rotors help the helicopter move and steer. Hospitals use helicopters for transporting patients in crisis, for whom an ambulance might not move fast enough. The word comes from Greek roots, helix, "spiral," and pteron, "wing."
Vocabulary lists containing helicopter
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:
Toppled in August 2024 by a student-led uprising that ended her 15-year, iron-fisted rule, Hasina fled by helicopter to India as crowds stormed her palace.
From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026
After completing medical evaluations at the landing site, the crew members will travel by helicopter to Karaganda, Kazakhstan, where recovery teams are stationed.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 27, 2026
Backed by water tankers and a helicopter, firefighters on Sunday fought to contain a stubborn wildfire in Northern California that prompted officials to order evacuations.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
A police helicopter and an air ambulance were circling above.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
The crowd was mesmerized by their video of the sleepy polar bear being loaded into a net and lifted into the air by helicopter, and Owen couldn’t help but turn to watch with them.
From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz
Dozens of firefighters helped by volunteers and water bombing by helicopters are continuing to tackle hotspots.
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
Several fires broke out in northern and central Portugal, with over 1,000 firefighters and other professionals fighting the flames, supported by around 20 planes and helicopters, civil protection services said.
From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026
Satellite imagery of those bases from 2019 onward show significant construction and an increasing presence of U.S. assets, including F-16s, F-18s, drones and helicopters.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
But Neil Gray, whose ministerial responsibilities include the fire service, said it had been unable to fulfil a "specific request" for water-bombing helicopters and that firefighters on the ground had the resources which were needed.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
As he galloped across the British Isles with the helicopters thundering above him, people stood and gaped and wondered what on earth was going on.
From "The BFG" by Roald Dahl
Mass opposition and a coup briefly deposed him, but after three days under guard on a military island, he helicoptered back to Caracas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 10, 2026
Instead, they recommended that Nusslock be helicoptered to UC San Francisco for an abortion.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2024
“Here’s the bottom line: When my predecessor got covid, he had to get helicoptered to Walter Reed,” Biden said.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 27, 2022
Williams was helicoptered to hospital and discharged that evening.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 7, 2022
It meant sitting quietly in your desk chair while your best friend is helicoptered off for emergency eye surgery.
From "Breadcrumbs" by Anne Ursu
The priciest dish on the menu tastes like roast beef with a little helicoptering from ginger and turmeric.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 28, 2023
He tumbled out of bounds at nearly 60 miles per hour, his skis helicoptering into the netting on one side of the slope.
From New York Times ● Dec. 5, 2021
“Your moral stature is actually enhanced the more persecuted you are or want to be. It’s a generation of overparenting, protecting children from every conceivable harm, helicoptering over them and infantilizing them.”
From Washington Times ● Oct. 18, 2021
Inspired by the aerodynamics of these helicoptering pods, as well as other gliding, spinning tree seeds, engineers claim to have crafted the smallest ever wind-borne machines, which they call “microfliers.”
From Scientific American ● Sep. 22, 2021
A few fall, helicoptering down to the forest floor.
From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz
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.
