1
a
: a pit or enclosure for cockfights
b
: a place noted for especially bloody, violent, or long-continued conflict
2
obsolete
: the pit of a theater
3
: a compartment in a sailing warship used as quarters for junior officers and for treatment of the wounded in an engagement
4
: a space or compartment in a usually small vehicle (such as a boat, airplane, or automobile) from which it is steered, piloted, or driven see airplane illustration
Examples of cockpit in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The impact severed the cockpit, and hurled a flight attendant -- still secured to her seat -- far from the crash site, her daughter told a Canadian TV station.
—
Arkansas Online, 24 Mar. 2026
The distinction between world and cockpit isn’t noticeable except at the edges of experience, such as during extreme episodes of drug intoxication and, well, death.
—Caleb Crain, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
Authorities recovered the plane's cockpit and flight data recorders by cutting a hole in the aircraft’s roof and then drove them to the NTSB lab in Washington for analysis, Homendy said.
—ABC News, 24 Mar. 2026
The impact severed the cockpit, killing the pilot and co-pilot, both based in Canada, and injuring dozens of others.
—Bradford Betz, FOXNews.com, 24 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for cockpit
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Arkansas Online, 24 Mar. 2026
The distinction between world and cockpit isn’t noticeable except at the edges of experience, such as during extreme episodes of drug intoxication and, well, death.
—Caleb Crain, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
Authorities recovered the plane's cockpit and flight data recorders by cutting a hole in the aircraft’s roof and then drove them to the NTSB lab in Washington for analysis, Homendy said.
—ABC News, 24 Mar. 2026
The impact severed the cockpit, killing the pilot and co-pilot, both based in Canada, and injuring dozens of others.
—Bradford Betz, FOXNews.com, 24 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for cockpit
Cite this Entry
“Cockpit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cockpit. Accessed 28 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
cockpit
noun
cock·pit
ˈkäk-ˌpit 
: a space or compartment in a usually small vehicle (as a boat, airplane, or automobile) from which it is steered, piloted, or driven
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