airlift

noun

air·​lift ˈer-ˌlift How to pronounce airlift (audio)
: a system of transporting cargo or passengers by aircraft often to or from an otherwise inaccessible area
airlift transitive verb

Examples of airlift in a Sentence

an emergency airlift to deliver supplies to the famine victims
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Ford ordered several airlifts to extract 130,000 South Vietnamese refugees and asylum-seekers. CBS News, 27 Apr. 2025 The airlift saved Ukraine’s leaders from being blockaded inside a new Russian Iron Curtain, but infuriated the Kremlin. Kevin Holden Platt, Forbes.com, 16 Apr. 2025 The initial force, according to the administration, is 1,500 troops, deployed as military airlift support for the Department of Homeland Security to deport more than 5,000 immigrants without legal status detained in San Diego, Calif., and El Paso, Texas. Alexis Simendinger, The Hill, 23 Jan. 2025 No one, including the United States, uses airlift to move this much armor. Barry R. Posen, Foreign Affairs, 21 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for airlift

Word History

First Known Use

1943, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of airlift was in 1943

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Airlift.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/airlift. Accessed 7 May. 2025.

Kids Definition

airlift

noun
air·​lift ˈa(ə)r-ˌlift How to pronounce airlift (audio)
ˈe(ə)r-
: a system of transporting cargo or passengers by aircraft to or from an area otherwise impossible to reach
airlift verb

More from Merriam-Webster on airlift

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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