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Synonyms

airflow

American  
[air-floh] / ˈɛərˌfloʊ /

noun

  1. the air flowing past or through a moving body, as an airplane or automobile.

airflow British  
/ ˈɛəˌfləʊ /

noun

  1. the flow of air in a wind tunnel or past a moving aircraft, car, train, etc; airstream

"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

Etymology

Origin of airflow

First recorded in 1910–15; air 1 + flow

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.

The Universal Waste Management System, as the device is officially called, uses airflow to get rid of waste.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026

They passed air through larynges removed from deceased horses and then alternated the airflow between normal air and helium.

From Science Daily • Feb. 25, 2026

The dead are placed in a sealed vessel bedded with clover, hay and straw and equipped to regulate airflow, temperature and moisture.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 3, 2026

The model integrates multiple streams of information, including brain signals, heart rhythms, muscle activity, pulse measurements, and airflow during breathing, and learns how these signals interact.

From Science Daily • Jan. 9, 2026

One test required Mary to clamber onto the catwalk of the wind tunnel, measuring how rivets disrupted the airflow over a particular model.

From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly

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.