aerial

1 of 2

adjective

ae·​ri·​al ˈer-ē-əl 

ā-ˈir-ē-əl

1

a

: of, relating to, or occurring in the air or atmosphere

the aerial acrobatics of circus performers

b

: existing or growing in the air rather than in the ground or in water

aerial plants

c(1)

: high in the air

aerial spires

(2)

: capable of being raised high in the air

The hydraulic aerial platform can accommodate up to five firefighters and even a wheelchair.

—Allan Stein

see also aerial ladder

d

: operating or operated overhead on elevated cables or rails

an aerial tram

2

: suggestive of air: such as

a

: lacking substance

aerial distinctions

b

: fanciful, ethereal

… visions of aerial joy …

—P. B. Shelley

3

a

: of or relating to aircraft

aerial navigation

aerial combat

b

: designed for use in, taken from, or operating from or against aircraft

aerial photographs/photography

c

: effected by means of aircraft

aerial transportation

a city subjected to aerial bombardment

aerial views

aerial spraying

4

American football : of, relating to, or gained by the forward pass

aerial touchdowns

a team known for its aerial attack

aerially

ˈer-ē-ə-lē 

ā-ˈir-ē-ə-lē

adverb

aerial

2 of 2

noun

aer·​i·​al ˈer-ē-əl 

1

: antenna sense 2

2

American football : forward pass

3

: an acrobatic maneuver performed (as by skiers and gymnasts) in the air

also, aerials plural : a ski event featuring such maneuvers

Did you know?

Shakespeare himself may have coined this word, in Othello, and later he gave the name Ariel to the famous air-spirit character in The Tempest. An aerialist is an acrobat who performs high above the audience. In painting, aerial perspective is the way an artist creates the illusion that a mountain or city is far away (something that early painters only slowly learned how to do), usually by making it slightly misty and bluish gray—as if seen through miles of air. An aerial work platform, or "cherry picker", supports a worker at a high elevation on the end of a crane. And aerial itself can be used as a noun, meaning a TV antenna, a forward pass in football, or a high-flying stunt performed by a skateboarder or snowboarder.

Examples of aerial in a Sentence

Adjective

the spectacular aerial acrobatics of the circus performers

Noun

She tried a new aerial in her last competition.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Easter Sunday, and aerial footage from KABC-TV showed a large hole on the side of the building that appeared to be boarded up with plywood. —Sean Murphy, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024

Researchers observed the North Atlantic right whale with an aerial camera just north of Marshfield on Monday, April 1, the Center for Coastal Studies said in a news release and on social media. —Brooke Baitinger, Miami Herald, 4 Apr. 2024

The photos, taken and released on Wednesday by the National Transportation Safety Board, show investigators working on board the vessel and deploying a drone to capture aerial footage of the area. —USA TODAY, 28 Mar. 2024

Engineers are finding new ways to make wind turbines more efficient by stealing design cues from one of the world’s heaviest aerial birds, the Andean condor. —Scott Travers, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024

Wallace said authorities were using subsurface search tools including sonar and underwater drones as well as marine and aerial support in the rescue efforts. —Adela Suliman, Washington Post, 26 Mar. 2024

Gone were the photographers who climbed the butte overlooking the practice facility — known as Shohei Mountain — to get aerial shots of Ohtani’s arrival. —Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2024

Photo : This Old Hudson An aerial view of the Pine Bush, N.Y., estate. —Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 25 Mar. 2024

Israel began a war on Gaza in response to that assault, with intense aerial bombardments and a ground offensive. —Ameera Harouda, New York Times, 24 Mar. 2024

Noun

The more intimate spaces such as the steam room and women’s powder room were built on stage, though there was a second unit that went out to Palm Beach to shoot aerials and wide establishers. —Katie Bowman, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Mar. 2024

Its dish-like microwave aerials were removed more than 10 years ago as they were no longer needed. —Lianne Kolirin, CNN, 21 Feb. 2024

Sora appears to allow for the switching of shots, including close-ups, tracking and aerials, as well as the changing of shot compositions. —Winston Cho, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Feb. 2024

McClung clinched perfect scores on three of his four dunks and impressed the judges and the crowd with his 360 and 540 aerials. —Dj Siddiqi, Forbes, 15 Feb. 2024

Six units worked for hours to extinguish the flames, with firefighters manning aerials to get at the blaze from above. —The Courier-Journal, 21 July 2023

But my second World Championship title in 2018 was for individual overall: two speed events, and single-rope freestyle, which is tricks: backflips, front flips, aerials. —Lauren Daley, BostonGlobe.com, 28 Apr. 2023

Kornieck, 24, leads the NWSL in aerials won with 15. —Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Apr. 2023

This information is collected by sophisticated aerials on the International Space Station and relayed back to Earth. —WIRED, 30 Mar. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Latin āerius (borrowed from Greek āérios, derivative of āer-, aḗr air entry 1) + -al entry 1

Noun

derivative of aerial entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

circa 1545, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1902, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing aerial

• aerial ladder
• aerial perspective
• unidentified aerial phenomenon

Kids Definition

aerial

1 of 2 adjective

ae·​ri·​al ˈar-ē-əl 

ˈer-

1

a

: of, relating to, or occurring in the air or atmosphere

an aerial display on a trapeze

b

: living or growing in the air rather than on the ground or in water

c

: running on cables or rails that are raised above the ground

an aerial railway

2

a

: of or relating to aircraft

aerial navigation

b

: designed for use in, taken from, or operating from aircraft

aerial photograph

aerially

-ē-ə-lē

adverb

aerial

2 of 2 noun

1

: antenna sense 2

2

: forward pass