seaplane

[ see-pleyn ]

/ ˈsiˌpleɪn /

noun

an airplane provided with floats for taking off from or landing on water.

Nearby words

sean, seanad éireann, seance, seaperch, seapiece, seaplane, seaport, seaq, seaquake, sear, search

Origin of seaplane

First recorded in 1910–15; sea + plane¹

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

Examples from the Web for seaplane

VESSELS MOORED IN HARBOR: NINE BATTLESHIPS; THREE CLASS-B CRUISERS; THREE SEAPLANE TENDERS; SEVENTEEN DESTROYERS.
The Forgotten Crimes of Japan's Pearl Harbor Spy, Tadashi Morimura|Marc Wortman|December 6, 2011|DAILY BEAST
If this storm meant grave dangers to them, what must it mean to two boys in a seaplane skimming through the air over the sea?
Curlie Carson Listens In|Roy J. Snell
This would give the bombs a better target than if the seaplane was cutting across the path of the airship.
Billy Barcroft, R.N.A.S.|Percy F. Westerman
At the same time, the seaplane just then did not seem to be making any headway.
Some Naval Yarns|Mordaunt Hall

The seaplane is merely an airplane with pontoons, It starts from the ground or from the deck of a vessel.
Our Navy in the War|Lawrence Perry
The next instant there was a vivid flash, followed by a crash that was audible above the roar of the seaplane's engine.
Billy Barcroft, R.N.A.S.|Percy F. Westerman

British Dictionary definitions for seaplane

seaplane

/ (ˈsiːˌpleɪn) /

noun

any aircraft that lands on and takes off from waterAlso called (esp US): hydroplane

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 seaplane

seaplane

1913, from sea + plane (n.2).