see usage paragraph below
: carrying, staffed, or performed by one or more people
a manned security booth
manned spaceflight
a manned mission
Usage of Manned and Unmanned

While manned and unmanned are still commonly used in news sources to describe spaceflights with and without human crews, respectively, NASA has since the early 21st century used and prescribed non-gender-specific terms, preferring such descriptors as human, piloted, and crewed for the former, and unpiloted and uncrewed for the latter.

Examples of manned in a Sentence

a manned mission to the moon
Recent Examples on the Web Meanwhile, Yang Liwei, deputy chief designer of China's manned space program and China's first astronaut handled the speaking part. David Szondy, New Atlas, 1 Oct. 2024 All too often, a Toronto Film Festival premiere is seen as an audition for a U.S. release, when the end result is more like sending a manned space flight into the sun. Damon Wise, Deadline, 16 Sep. 2024 There are manned checkpoints to the burn zone, so only residents with ID can pass through. Catherine Garcia, theweek, 23 July 2024 Michael Brackman, 44, of Canonsburg, was charged June 11 with numerous counts of stalking, possession of an instrument of crime, harassment, and unlawful use of a manned aircraft, court records show. Lauren Liebhaber, Miami Herald, 12 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for manned 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'manned.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1583, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of manned was in 1583

Dictionary Entries Near manned

Cite this Entry

“Manned.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/manned. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

manned

adjective
: carrying or performed by a person
manned spaceflight

More from Merriam-Webster on manned

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!