rocket engine

noun

1. a reaction engine that produces a thrust due to an exhaust consisting entirely of material, as oxidizer, fuel, and inert matter, that has been carried with the engine in the vehicle it propels, none of the propellant being derived from the medium through which the vehicle moves.

rocket engine

noun

1. Also called: rocket motor. a reaction engine in which a fuel and oxidizer are burnt in a combustion chamber, the products of combustion expanding through a nozzle and producing thrust

rocket engine

1. An engine used to produce a jet of hot gases to propel a rocket. The jet is produced by combustion of a fuel with other chemicals stored in the rocket. Since they do not rely on the oxygen in the atmosphere for combustion, rocket engines can operate in space.

2. Compare turbojet

Word History and Origins

Origin of rocket engine¹

First recorded in 1930–35