launch vehicle

noun

: a rocket used to launch a satellite or spacecraft

Examples of launch vehicle in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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But military experts said Iran may have used its space launch vehicle for an improvised firing. Arkansas Online, 22 Mar. 2026 California based Rocket Lab Corporation has received a $190 million contract for a block buy of 20 hypersonic test flights with its HASTE (Hypersonic Accelerator Suborbital Test Electron) launch vehicle. Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 21 Mar. 2026 Quite a contrast to launch vehicles, where 90 percent of the mass is propellant, right? Lee Billings, Scientific American, 18 Mar. 2026 That launch vehicle, however, has flown only twice since its January 2025 debut and has other customers with urgent needs, which may make 2027 a more realistic timeframe for AST. Rob Pegoraro, PC Magazine, 4 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for launch vehicle

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1960, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of launch vehicle was circa 1960

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Cite this Entry

“Launch vehicle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/launch%20vehicle. Accessed 26 Mar. 2026.

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