cockpit

noun

cock·​pit ˈkäk-ˌpit 

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

Further aft, the cockpit is equipped with fold-down side bulwarks that open to create an expansive alfresco entertaining area by the sea. — Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 5 Oct. 2026

The latest details follow last week's dramatic incident aboard Flight FZ1073, which was traveling from Dubai to Tel Aviv when the co-pilot allegedly attacked the captain inside the cockpit. — Bradford Betz, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2026

Investigators said that the co-pilot carried out the attack with what's called a crash axe — a lightweight emergency tool stored in the cockpit to break through panels or jammed doors in the event of a crash. — Kat Lonsdorf, NPR, 5 Oct. 2026

Though some concept drawings were released by the company shortly after the project began in 2008, more recent renditions have been little more than hints showing the craft as an outline in the haze, with only the nose and cockpit showing clearly. — New Atlas, 4 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1556, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing cockpit

• cockpit voice recorder

Rhymes for cockpit

• acquit
• admit
• armpit
• backlit
• befit
• commit
• dalit
• dendrite
• emit
• illite
• misfit
• moonlit

Kids 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